UNIVERSITY  of  CALIFORNIA 


Ai 

LOS  ANGELES 
LIBRARY 


BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO   FRUIT 
GROWING 


Other  Books  by  the  Same  Author 

LANDSCAPE  GARDENING 

PLUMS  AND  PLUM  CULTURE 

FRUIT  HARVESTING,  STORING,  MARKETING 

SYSTEMATIC  POMOLOGY 

DWARF  FRUIT  TREES 

THE  AMERICAN  APPLE  ORCHARD 

THE  LANDSCAPE  BEAUTIFUL 


Beginners'  Guide 
to  Fruit  Growing 

A  Simple  Statement  of  the  Elementary 
Practices  of  Propagation,  Planting,  Cul- 
ture, Fertilization,  Pruning,  Spraying,  etc. 


By 

F.  A.  WAUGH 


Amply    Illustrated 


*t>RA*NGE*  JUDD    COMPANV" 

LONDON 

KEGAN  PAUL,  TRENCH,  TRUBNER  &  Co.,   Limited 
1913 


Copyright,  1912 

ORANGE  JUDD  COMPANY 

All  rights  reserved 


ENTERED  AT  STATIONERS'  HALL,  LONDON,  ENGLAND 


Printed  in  U.  S.  A. 


SB 

5 


TO  THE  MEMORY  OF 

JUDGE  FRED  WELLHOUSF 

"THE  APPLE  KING  OF  KANSAS" 

ONE  OF  MY  EARLIEST  FRIENDS  ANI> 

ADVISORS  IN  THE  FIELD  OF 

HORTICULTURE 


PREFACE 

THIS  little  book  is  written  for  the  one  who  does 
not  know.  The  man  who  has  already  arrived  may 
think  it  hardly  worth  while,  but  I  ask  him  to  re- 
member that  the  simplest  questions  are  the  ones 
oftenest  asked,  and  that  the  beginners  are  the  ones 
who  oftenest  need  help.  I  trust  no  one  will  be- 
grudge the  excellent  company  of  novices  even  so 
small  a  help  as  that  which  is  here  most  humbly 
offered  by  their  friend  and  well  wisher, 

F.  A.  WAUGFL 
Massachusetts  Agricultural  College,  1912. 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  I 
PROPAGATION  — 


CHAPTER  II 
PLANTING  


CHAPTER  III 
MANAGEMENT —    39 

CHAPTER  IV 
PRUNING  58 

CHAPTER  V 
SPRAYING  


CHAPTER  VI 
THE  VARIOUS  FRUITS  __  96 


CHAPTER  VII 
RENOVATION   109 


PROPAGATION 


PRACTICALLY  all  fruit  trees  used  in  gardens  or 
orchards  are  propagated*  by  grafting  or  by  bud- 
ding. This  work  is  usually  done  by  the  nursery- 
man, who  sells  the  trees  at  an  age  of  one  or  two 
years.  As  a  rule,  subject  only  to  rare  exceptions, 
this  is  the  best  plan.  The  professional  nursery- 
man, with  his  experience  and  with  suitable  soil,  can 
grow  better  trees  and  grow  them  cheaper  than  can 
any  ordinary  farmer,  gardener  or  fruit  grower. 
Nevertheless  there  are  a  good  many  persons  who 


FIG.   1. — GRAFTING  KNIFE 

like  to  grow  their  own  young  trees,  even  at  a  slight 
extra  expense,  and  such  persons  ought  always  to 
have  the  privilege.  Every  gardener  and  fruit 
grower,  moreover,  ought  to  understand  the  proc- 
esses of  budding  and  grafting,  if  only  for  fun  or 
self-protection. 

A  few  fruits,  indeed,  may  be  grown  from  cuttings, 
without  grafting.  These  are  mostly  not  tree  fruits, 
but  such  things  as  currants,  grapes,  etc.  A  few 
varieties  of  pears  and  still  fewer  of  plums  are  suc- 
cessfully grown  from  cuttings  in  the  far  southern 


*See  The  Propagation  of  Plants,  by  A.  S.  Fuller.     Orange 
Judd  Co.,  New  York. 


2  BEGINNERS     GUIDE   TO    FRUIT   GROWING 

states,  but  these  cases  hardly  form  a  sufficient  ex- 
ception to  prove  the  rule. 

Among  old  orchards  a)  e  a  few  also  planted  with 
seedling  (ungrafted)  trees.  In  early  days  there  was 
some  excuse — though  rarely  adequate  excuse — for 
using  these  seedlings.  Today  there  is  no  reason 
whatever  for  planting  anything  but  grafted  trees 
anywhere  in  America  that  a  garden  can  be  made 
or  a  farm  opened  up.  When  grafted  or  budded  trees 
can  be  bought  at  15  to  35  cents  each,  now  the  almost 
universal  range  of  price,  no  man  can  afford  to  use 
seedlings. 

ROOT-GRAFTING 

One  of  the  commonest  ways  of  propagating 
nursery  trees  is  by  root-grafting.  As  this  applies 
principally  to  the  apple,  it  may  be  described  as 
practiced  with  that  fruit. 

The  apple  stocks  are  grown  from  seeds  saved 
from  the  cider  mills.  These  seeds  come  largely 
from  the  New  England  states,  especially  Vermont 
and  New  Hampshire.  The  stocks  are  largely  grown 
in  a  few  restricted  localities.  At  one  year  old  these 
seedlings  are  dug,  graded  and  sold  to  the  nursery- 
men, who  use  them  both  in  budding  and  grafting. 
Considerable  quantities  of  similar  seedling  stocks 
are  now  being  imported  annually  from  France. 
These  are  known  simply  as  French  stocks,  but  they 
are  not  'essentially  different  from  the  American  stocks. 

The  amateur  who  wishes  to  do  a  little  budding 
or  grafting  for  himself  should  imitate  the  average 
nurseryman  in  buying  his  stocks  ready  grown.  Of 
course,  anyone  can  sow  apple  seeds  in  his  own 
garden  and  can  grow  apple  stocks  just  as  easily  as 


PROPAGATION  3 

he  can  grow  cabbage ;  but  the  men  who  are  spend- 
ing a  lifetime  in  this  highly  specialized  branch  of 
horticulture  can  evidently  do  the  thing  to  better 
advantage. 

For  root-grafting  the  roots  should  be  secured 
in  November  or  early  December.  The  cions, 
chosen  from  reliable  trees  of  the  desired  varieties, 
should  be  cut  about  the  same  time.  In  cool,  moist 
storage  these  cions  will  keep  for  two  or 
three  months  without  damage.  They 
should  be  clean,  straight  shoots  of  one- 
year-old  wood  only,  firm  and  well 
matured. 

The  cion  may  be  united  with  the 
stock  by  any  one  of  several  methods  of 
grafting.  The  two  members  may  be 
simply  slanted  off — the  stock  at  its 
upper  end,  the  cion  at  its  lower  end — 
with  a  clean  cut,  and  the  two  pieces 
spliced  together  and  tied  with  soft  cloth 
or  grafting  twine.  (Figure  2.)  This  is 
what  is  known  as  a  splice-graft. 
FIG.  2  fhe  usual  method,  however,  is  the  whip- 

SPLICE-GRAFT  ..  '  ,   .  '         .  .         \ 

graft,  or  tongue-graft,  which  is  simply 
an  improvement  in  .splicing,  whereby  the  two  parts  hold 
together  more  firmly  and  more  quickly  grow  together 
when  stored  or  planted.  The  graftsman  takes  the  cion 
in  his  left  hand  and  with  a  sharp  knife  cuts  the 
slanting  lower  end,  just  as  in  splice-grafting.  Then, 
reversing  the  cion,  he  cuts  a  thin  tongue,  as  shown 
in  the  illustration  (Figure  3).  The  important  con- 
sideration here,  is  to  cut,  not  split,  the  wood,  leav- 
ing a  strong  stiff  tongue,  which  will  tightly  grip 
the  similar  tongue  on  the  stock.  The  stock  is  cut 
in  precisely  the  same  way. 


BEGINNERS     GUIDE   TO   FRUIT   GROWING 


i 


Cion  and  stock  should  each  have  a  length  of  3  to 
6  inches,  4  inches  being  customary.  A  fair  seedling 
apple  root  will  cut  into  two  pieces,  and  a  good  one 
into  three  pieces,  and  each  piece  may  be  used  as  the 
stock  on  which  to  start  a  new  apple  tree.  The 
graft  is  then  known  as  a  piece-root  graft.  Or  the 
entire  root  of  the  apple  seedling  may  be  used  in 
one  piece,  one  seedling  root  to  each  apple  tree 

propagated.     This  is  what 

is  known  as  the  whole- 
root  graft.  Great  advan- 
tages have  sometimes  been 
claimed,  but  never  proved, 
for  the  whole-root  graft. 

The  customary  working 
method  is  to  cut  and  pre- 
pare several  cions,  theft  to 
prepare  several  stocks,  then 
to  fit  cions  and  stocks  to- 
gether, tying  each  graft 
firmly  with  soft  twine.  A 
particularly  fancy  job  is 
done  by  dipping  the  joints  in 
soft  grafting  wax.  The 

grafts  are  now  completed  and  should  be  tied  up  in  small 
bundles,  about  50  to  each  bundle,  and  packed  in  saw- 
dust. The  sawdust  should  be  slightly  moistened  and 
the  boxes  containing  the  grafts  should  be  stored  in  a 
cool  cellar,  preferably  safe  from  severe  freezing.  If  the 
grafts  are  correctly  made  and  packed  before  Christmas, 
they  will  heal  before  planting  time  in  the  spring. 
Stock  and  cion  will  be  found  firmly  grown  together 
when  the  boxes  are  brought  into  the  field  in  early 
April  for  planting. 

At  potato-planting  time   in   the  spring,  or  per- 


FIG.   2 a — WHIP-GRAFTING 


PROPAGATION 


haps  a  week  earlier,  the  grafts  should  be  set  in  a 
clean,  thoroughly  tilled  garden  spot.  Mellow,  warm, 
well-drained  soil  with  an  abundance  of  plant  food 
is  essential.  The  garden  line  is  stretched  across 
the  plot,  a  trench  is  opened  out  8  to  12  inches  deep, 


a 


FIG.    3 — WHIP-GRAFT 

and  the  grafts  set  against  the  straight  side  of  this 
furrow.  They  should  be  set  8  inches  apart,  and 
covered  with  soil  nearly  to  the  tops  of  the  cions, 
leaving,  say,  two  buds  projecting.  The  soil  should 
be  firmly  packed  around  them.  Thereafter  they 
are  to  be  hoed  and  tended  like  any  other  crop.  Such 
grafts  are  usually  ready  for  transplanting  to  the 
orchard  after  two  years'  growth ;  but  fertile  soil  and 
good  care  will  give  trees  heavy  enough  for  use  in 
one  year. 


BEGINNERS     GUIDE   TO    FRUIT    GROWING 


SIDE-GRAFTING 

Another  good  method  sometimes  employed,  espe- 
cially with  plums,  is  side-grafting.  There  are  some 
variations  of  this  method,  but  the  one  herewith 
described  is  as  good  as  any — perhaps  the  best. 

The  stocks  are  not  dug,  but  are  grafted  in  the 
rows  where  they  are  grown.  This  item  is  especially 
applicable  to  plum  grafting,  for  one  can  nearly 
always  grow  his  own  plum  stocks  as  well  as  to  buy 


FIG.   4 — SIDE-GRAFT 

them.  The  work  may  be  done  in  the  autumn  or 
very  early  in  the  spring.  Cions  are  secured  and 
kept  just  as  for  whip-grafting.  When  the  graft  is 
to  be  made,  however,  the  cion  is  cut  to  a  long,  thin 
wedge  at  its  lower  end.  The  stock  is  cut  with 
a  slanting  stroke  downward,  as  near  the  surface  of 
the  ground  as  practicable,  the  left  hand  of  the 
graftsman  grasping  the  stem  of  the  young  seedling 
tree  and  bending  it  slightly  away  from  the  cut. 
The  wedged  end  of  the  cion  is  then  inserted  in  this 


PROPAGATION 


slit,  then  the  seedling,  being  released,  springs  back 
into  position  securely  pinching  and  holding  the 
cion.  For  greater  security  the  graft  may  be  wound 
with  soft  cloth  or  grafting  twine. 

The  cions  on  these  grafts  should  begin  to  make 
strong  growth  by  the  middle  or  last  of  May.  As 
soon  as  this  stage  is  reached  the  seedling  stocks 
should  be  cut  off  with  a  pair  of  strong  shears  just 

above     the     point     of    

union.  At  the  same 
time  it  will  be  well  to 
cut  any  bandages  or 
ties  which  were  put  on 
when  the  grafts  were 
set. 

THE  NURSE-GRAFT 

Of  the  hundreds  of 
methods  of  grafting 
one  other  may  be  men- 
tioned, more  as  a  sam- 
ple of  such  methods 
than  for  general  recom- 
mendation. Nevertheless,  the  nurse-graft  is  a  practical 
working  method,  and  as  good  as  any.  In  some  cases  it 
may  have  practical  advantages.  The  method  consists 
essentially  in  supplying  a  cutting  with  a  root  which 
acts  as  nurse.  The  form  of  making  cut  and  union 
is  exactly  the  reverse  of  that  just  described  in  side- 
grafting.  The  cion,  which  should  be  relatively 
long,  say  12  inches,  is  given  an  upward  cut  near 
its  middle,  as  shown  in  Figure  5.  The  piece  of 
root  which  forms  the  stock  or  nurse  is  cut  to  a 
long  wedge  at  its  upper  end.  This  wedge  is  in- 


FIG.    5 — THE  NURSE-GRAFT 


8  BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO  FRUIT  GROWING 

serted  in  the  incision  in  the  cion.  The  graft  may 
then  be  tied  with  grafting  twine,  but  in  many  cases 
this  extra  care  will  be  found  unnecessary.  This 
method  has  sometimes  been  rather  imaginatively 
called  the  "foster-mother  graft."  It  is  useful  espe- 
cially for  those  varieties  which  root  readily  from 
the  cions.  At  the  end  of  the  first  year's  growth, 
then,  the  little  stock  may  be  removed,  leaving  an 
own-rooted  tree,  free  from  all  foreign  influences  of 
a  strange  stock.  In  some  cases  this  is  considered 
advantageous. 

BUDDING 

Budding  accomplishes  the  same  ends  as  whip- 
grafting,  but  in  a  very  different  manner.  It  has 
advantages  and  disadvantages.  As  a  rule  it  is  prac- 
ticed with  the  stone  fruits  generally,  the  reason 
being  that  the  wood  of  these  fruits  is  so  soft  and 
brittle  that  it  cannot  be  cut  in  the  forms  required 
for  grafting.  Budding  is  also  used  largely  on  apple 
and  pear  trees.  Some  nurserymen  prefer  budding; 
others  think  grafting  serves  them  better.  The 
nurserymen  of  the  eastern  states  usually  propagate 
apples  by  budding;  those  of  the  central-western 
states  mostly  prefer  the  method  of  root-grafting. 

Just  here  we  may  answer  a  common  question  as 
to  the  comparative  value  of  the  results.  Sometimes 
a  nurseryman  will  claim  great  advantages  for  his 
trees  because  they  are  budded  rather  than  grafted ; 
at  other  times  men  will  claim  the  precedence  for 
grafted  trees ;  frequently  special  claims  are  put 
forth  for  trees  propagated  by  some  special  method — 
perhaps  some  mysterious  secret  method.  It  is 
proper  to  treat  all  such  claims  either  as  pure  bosh 


PROPAGATION  9 

or  deliberate  fraud.  The  fact  is,  that  good  clean 
nursery  trees  of  the  same  size,  weight  and  develop- 
ment are  all  worth  precisely  the  same  without 
reference  to  the  methods  whereby  they  were  propa- 
gated. The  particular  method  of  budding  or  graft- 
ing is  not  worth  a  picayune  to  the  thousand. 

As  budding  is  more  extensively  prac- 
ticed with  the  peach  than  with  any  other 
fruit,  we  may  most  easily  describe  the 
method  used  in  that  work.  The  modifica- 
tions of  method  required  in  budding 
apples,  pears  or  plums  are  mostly  unim- 
portant, and  would  occur  to  any  novice 
who  might  try  to  make  the  application  for 
himself. 

The  stocks  are  grown  in  place,  in  the 
rows  where  they  are  to  be  budded.     The 
peach  pits  are  planted  in  these  rows  in 
early  .spring,   and   by   the   time   they   are 
required  in  the  last  half  of  August,  the 
young  seedlings  should  have  a  height  of        FIG.  6 
3  to  4  feet,  and  a  diameter  at  the  ground     B"°™£G 
of  YT.  to  -;4  inches. 

Budding  time  runs  from  the  first  of  August  to  the 
first  of  October,  depending  partly  on  the  growth, 
but  chiefly  on  the  condition  of  the  stocks  as  deter- 
mined by  the  conditions  of  weather.  The  regular 
test  is  made  by  observing  whether  the  bark  slips. 
The  bark  on  the  stock  should  peel  or  slip  easily,  just 
as  it  must  on  willow  shoots  when  willow  whistles 
have  to  be  made.  The  stocks  are  then  put  in  readi- 
ness by  mild  pruning,  the  lower  branches,  to  a 
height  of  a  foot,  from  the  ground,  being  rubbed  or 
cut  off.  This  must  not  be  done,  however,  till  the 
hour  when  the  buds  are  to  be  set. 


io          BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO  FRUIT  GROWING 

The  cions  are  cut  as  "budding  sticks"  from  relia- 
ble fruiting  trees  of  the  variety  which  is  to  be  repro- 
duced. A  budding  stick  is  a  shoot  of  the  current 
year's  growth,  usually  12  to  18  inches  in  length,  and 
having  at  the  base  the  diameter  of  a  small  lead 
pencil.  From  this  the  blades  of  the  leaves  are 


FIG.    7  —  POCKET  BUDDING  KNIFE 

clipped  immediately  when  the  stick  is  taken  from 
the  parent  tree.  The  petioles  or  stems  of  the  leaves 
are  left,  however,  and  serve  a  very  useful  purpose 
in  setting  the  buds.  (See  Figure  6.) 

The  operator  should  be  supplied  with  a  regular 
budding  knife  (  Figure  7  or  8)  .  Kneeling  beside  the  row 
of  stocks,  he  begins  by  cutting  a  T-shaped  incision 
through  the  bark  of  the  stock,  preferably  on  the 
shady  north  side,  and  as  near  the  surface  of  the 


FIG.    8 — RIGID  BUDDING  KNIFE 

ground  as  he  can  conveniently  work.  The  two  lips 
of  this  incision  should  peel  up  smoothly  from  the 
wood  beneath,  so  as  to  allow  the  easy  insertion  of 
the  bud.  The  cion  consists  of  a  single  bud  cut 
shield-shape,  as  shown  in  Figure  9.  This  little 
shield  is  slipped  downward  in  the  opening  made  by 
the  peeled-up  bark  on  the  stock,  and  is  then  tied 
in  place  with  a  soft  strip  of  raffia.  The  tying  is 
usually  done  by  a  boy  or  other  laborer  whose  time 
is  cheaper  than  that  of  a  good  budder. 


PROPAGATION 


I  I 


These  ties  must  be  examined  from  time  to  time, 
and  should  be  removed  as  soon  as  the  buds  "take." 
Within  about  a  month,  if  not  removed,  they  will 
begin  to  choke  the  stocks  which  continue  to  ex- 
pand in  diameter  rapidly  at  this  season.  The  tie  is 
cut  by  running  a  sharp  knife  longitudinally  up  the 
stem  of  the  stock  on  the  side  opposite  the  bud. 

The  buds  should  grow  fast  to  the  stocks  within 
two  to  four  weeks,  but  should  remain  dormant 
through  the  first  winter. 
They  should  start  into 
growth  the  following  spring. 
As  soon  as  their  growth  is 
assured  the  stocks  should 
be  smoothly  cut  off  about 
an  inch  above  the  growing 
bud.  Care  is  required 
throughout  the  first  year  to 
protect  the  nursling  bud 
from  the  encroachments  of 
the  stock.  Very  often  other 
buds  start  into  growth  from 
the  stock  and  would  soon 
smother  the  strange  bud  so 
carefully  grafted  in.  Of 
course,  all  such  seedling  shoots  must  be  promptly 
rubbed  off. 

Budded  peach  trees  should  always  be  trans- 
planted to  their  permanent  positions  in  garden  or 
orchard  after  the  buds  have  grown  one  year.  Strong 
growing  varieties  of  plums  and  cherries  should  also 
be  transplanted  at  one  year  old.  Budded  apples  on 
good  soil  are  best  transplanted  at  one  year  from  the 
bud,  though  the  commoner  practice  is  to  grow  them 
in  the  nursery  rows  to  the  age  of  two  years.  Like- 


no.  9 — SHIELD  BUDDING 


BEGINNERS     GUIDE   TO    FRUIT   GROWING 


wise  pears  are  usually  grown  two  years  in  the  nurs- 
ery, but  strong-growing  varieties,  like  Kieffer,  on 
good  land  will  reach  such  a  size  the  first  season  as 
to  make  transplanting  advisable. 

CLEFT-GRAFTING 

While  budding  and  whip-grafting  are  usually 
used  in  the  propagation  of  trees  in  the  nursery, 
cleft-grafting  has  its  common 
application  in  the  reworking  of 
old  trees  in  the  orchard.  If  old 
pear  trees,  apple  trees,  or  plum 
trees  are  bearing  unknown  or 
undesirable  varieties  of  fruit 
they  may  be  changed  by  graft- 
ing to  any  other  variety  de- 
sired. This  is  sometimes  called 
top-grafting,  as  the  work  is 
done  in  the  tops  of  the  trees 
instead  of  on  the  roots. 

This  top-grafting  is  done  in 
early  spring,  the  earlier  the 
better.  The  last  half  of 
March  offers  the  best  oppor- 
portunity,  and  the  work  runs  grave  danger 
of  failure  if  delayed  until  the  buds  start  on  the 
trees.  Cions  for  top-grafting  are  cut  late  in  the  fall 
before  heavy  freezing.  They  should  be  securely 
labeled  with  the  names  of  varieties  and  stored  in  a 
cool  dark  cellar.  When  grafting  time  arrives  prep- 
arations begin  by  making  up  a  batch  of  grafting 
wax.  Every  true  and  tried  graftsman  has  his  own 
pet  formula  for  this  mixture,  but  the  following 
recipes  will  serve  as  a  basis  for  the  work  of  begin- 
ners: 


FIG.  10 — CLEFT-GRAFT- 
ING 


PROPAGATION  13 

GRAFTING    WAX 

Resin          4  pounds 
Beeswax     i  pound 
Tallow        i  pound 

Melt  these  together  and  pour  the  material  into  a 
pail  of  cold  water.  Then  with  greased  hands  pull 
the  wax  like  old-fashioned  taffy  until  it  is  white 
and  comparatively  clear.  Slightly  more  beeswax 
in  this  formula  will  usually  make  a  smoother  work- 
ing wax. 

RECIPE    NO.    2 

Resin  6  pounds 

Beeswax  i  pound 

Pure  linseed  oil    i  pint 

Cook  thoroughly.  This  makes  a  softer  wax, 
which  can  be  applied  with  a  stiff  paint  brush.  The 
harder  wax,  about  the  consistency  of  chewing  gum, 
is  preferred  by  most  workmen,  and  is  applied  with 
the  bare  hands. 

Preparation  next  looks  to  the  grafting  tools, 
which  are  as  follows:  A  small  sharp  saw,  a  light 
wooden  mallet,  a  sharp  knife  and  a  special  grafting 
knife. 

Trees  for  top-grafting  may  be  of  almost  any  age, 
from  two  years  old  to  two  hundred.  The  work  is 
most  commonly  done,  however,  on  full-grown  trees 
of  10  to  50  years  of  age. 

Several.branches  are  selected  for  grafting.  These 
should  be  sound  branches,  free  from  disease,  sym- 
metrically placed  throughout  the  tree  top,  and  hav- 
ing a  diameter  of  2  to  4  inches.  From  4  to  12  such 
branches  should  be  used  in  grafting  a  tree  of  mod- 
erate size.  The  branches  are  sawed  off  squarely, 


14          BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO  FRUIT  GROWING 

as  low  down  as  practicable,  care  being  given  to 
leave  all  the  stubs  about  an  equal  distance  from  the 
center  of  the  tree. 

The  operator  now  takes  his  grafting  knife  (some- 
times called  also  a  grafting  chisel)   and  his  light 


FIG.    11 — GRAFT  AFTER  ONE  YEAR'S  GROWTH 

wooden  mallet,  and  splits  a  stub  down  the  center. 
This  split  should  extend  from  4  to  6  inches  down 
the  branch.  The  chisel  is  withdrawn  and  its  wedge- 
shaped  portion  is  inserted  in  the  center  of  the  stub, 
so  as  to  open  the  split  about  one-half  inch. 

Meanwhile  the  cions  have  been  prepared  by 
cutting  them  in  lengths  of  4  inches  and  trimming 
each  one  to  a  long,  thin  wedge  at  the  bottom.  This 


PROPAGATION  1 5 

wedge  should  also  slope  slightly  sidewise  so  as  to 
be  a  trifle  thicker  at  one  side  than  at  the  other. 
With  a  cion  having  a  diameter  of  ^4  to  ^  inch  the 
wedge  portion  should  measure  1^4  inches  from  heel 
to  point. 

In  the  opened  stub  the  graftsman  now  inserts 
two  of  these  cions,  one  at  either  side,  the  thicker 
edge  of  the  cion  to  the  outer  edge  of  the  stub,  as 
shown  in  the  picture  (Figure  10).  The  wedge  is 
now  withdrawn  from  the  center  of  the  stub,  which 
will  spring  shut,  pinching  and  holding  the  two 
cions  in  place.  The  graft  is  now  protected  by  a 
•covering  of  grafting  wax,  special  care  being  used 
to  cover  the  exposed  split  in  the  stock  and  the  two 
openings  along  either  side  of  the  stub  where  the 
cions  are  put  in. 

This  completes  the  graft.  A  little  attention  dur- 
ing the  summer  will  prevent  the  growing  cions  be- 
ing choked  or  shaded  to  death  by  shoots  which 
sometimes  spring  up  from  the  stubs.  Such  grafts 
will  be  ready  to  begin  bearing  after  a  growth  of 
two  to  six  years,  the  time  being  rather  variable 
according  to  the  very  diverse  circumstances  which 
arise. 

It  is  usually  necessary  to  go  over  a  tree  grafted 
in  this  way,  repairing  and  completing  the  grafting 
the  year  after  the  first  work  is  done.  Indeed, 
many  experienced  men  prefer  to  regraft  a  tree  in 
two  or  even  three  annual  instalments.  After  a 
year's  growth  of  the  grafts,  it  is  proper  to  prune 
out  by  degrees  the  old  branches  representing  the 
variety  formerly  borne  by  the  tree.  Thus  the  tree 
is  changed  from  one  variety  to  another  rather 
gradually,  the  entire  change  covering  a  period  of 
two  to  six  years. 


16          BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO  FRUIT  GROWING 


FIG.    12— REGRAFTED  PLUM   TREE 
INFLUENCE  OF  STOCK  ON  CION 

The  main  purpose  of  graftage  is  to  reproduce  a 
variety  more  accurately  than  it  can  be  reproduced 
by  seed.  A  Baldwin  apple,  or  a  Green  Gage  plum, 
for  instance,  will  not  come  true  from  seed.  When, 
however,  a  variety  is  reproduced  by  grafting  from 
cions,  the  reproduction  is  sufficiently  exact  to  an- 


PROPAGATION  I/ 

swer  all  purposes.  A  whole  orchard  of  grafted 
Baldwin  trees  are  practically  alike,  or  a  whole 
block  of  budded  Green  Gage  plums. 

However,  this  method  of  reproduction  is  not  ab- 
solutely perfect,  because  the  stock  on  which  the 
cions  are  grafted  sometimes  exerts  a  perceptible 
influence  on  the  tree.  These  influences,  though 
comparatively  slight,  are  sometimes  of  practical  im- 
portance. They  are  so  curious  and  interesting  that 
they  have  always  been  given  careful  study  by  hor- 
ticulturists, who,  in  fact,  have  many  times  over- 
emphasized their  practical  importance.  Without 
making  this  mistake  of  magnifying  the  influence  of 
the  stock  upon  the  cion,  let  us  look  briefly  at  the 
subject  to  see  what  these  influences  are. 

The  most  important  one  is  dwarfing.  A  small, 
slow-growing  stock  will  make  the  tree  smaller  than 
it  would  be  on  a  vigorous,  fast-growing  stock.  This 
is  the  method  by  which  dwarf  trees  are  propagated. 
The  Paradise  apple,  for  example,  is  a  very  slow- 
growing  variety,  and  a  Baldwin  cion  grafted  upon 
it  will  make  a  comparatively  dwarf  tree. 

The  habit  of  growth  is  sometimes  greatly  modi- 
fied by  the  stock.  The  influence  of  the  stock  some- 
times makes  the  tree  more  spreading,  sometimes 
more  upright.  These  influences  are  usually  slight 
and  seldom  of  any  practical  importance. 

The  stock  sometimes  brings  trees  into  earlier 
bearing  or,  conversely,  delays  the  bearing  period. 
Dwarf  stocks  generally  make  trees  bear  earlier.  In 
this  instance,  the  influence  has  some  practical  value. 

The  stock  may  also  influence  the  period  at  which 
the  fruit  matures.  Varieties  grafted  on  roots  or 
stems  of  early  ripening  sorts  will  commonly  ripen 
at  an  earlier  period  under  such  influence.  No  prac- 


i8          BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO  FRUIT  GROWING 

tical  use  has  ever  been  made  of  this.  The  keeping 
quality  of  fruit  is  influenced  in  the  same  way.  If 
earlier  maturity  is  forced  through  the  influence  of 
the  stock,  this  will  cause  a  shorter  keeping  season. 
On  the  other  hand,  if  a  stock  tends  to  give  a  tree 
a  later  period  of  maturity,  the  fruit  will  keep  longer. 

The  flavor  is  sometimes  influenced  by  the  stock. 
A  variety  grafted  on  a  sweet  apple  tends  to  develop 
a  sweetish  flavor. 

Color  is  also  modified  at  times  in  the  same  way. 
As  a  rule,  of  course,  color,  like  flavor,  will  be  modi- 
fied in  the  direction  of  the  same  quality  in  the  par- 
ent stock.  A  striped  apple  grafted  on  the  stock  of 
a  dark  red  apple  will  tend  to  become  darker  in  color. 
These  influences  are  sufficient  in  some  cases  to 
make  an  important  difference  in  exhibition  speci- 
mens, but  otherwise  are  of  no  practical  consequence. 

We  may  conclude,  then,  as  we  began,  that  while 
these  modifications  due  to  the  action  of  the  stock 
are  very  interesting,  they  are  usually  negligible  in 
practice,  and  in  general  fruit  growing  no  practical 
advantage  can  be  taken  of  them. 

STOCKS  FOR  VARIOUS  FRUITS 

In  the  propagation  of  trees  in  the  nursery,  a 
primary  problem  is  always  to  secure  suitable  stocks. 
In  some  cases  they  are  grown  in  the  garden  of  the 
man  who  does  the  budding  or  grafting,  while  in 
other  cases  it  is  better  economy  to  buy  them  in  the 
open  market. 

Apple  stocks  may  be  grown  in  any  garden,  by 
planting  apple  seeds.  The  apple  seeds  should  be 
taken  from  cider  pomace,  washed  out,  dried,  and 
kept  until  the  following  spring.  They  are  then 


PROPAGATION  19 

planted  like  any  other  garden  seeds,  in  good  garden 
soil.  The  strongest  of  the  seedlings  may  be  ready 
for  budding  the  first  of  August.  As  a  rule,  they  will 
need  to  be  grown  two  years  before  they  are  ready 
for  budding.  The  large  ones  should  be  suitable  for 
root-grafting  at  the  end  of  the  first  year.  The 
small  ones  may  be  transplanted  and  grown  another 
year,  when  they  also  will  be  ready  for  budding  or 
grafting. 

It  is  generally  cheaper  and  more  satisfactory, 
however,  to  buy  apple  stocks  ready  grown.  They 
are  extensively  cultivated,  especially  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  Topeka,  Kan.,  where  the  soil  is  par- 
ticularly suited  to  the  production  of  long,  clean, 
straight  apple  roots.  Prices  vary  considerably  in 
different  years  and  for  different  grades.  The  ex- 
treme range  is  from  $i  to  $10  a  thousand.  Usually 
a  few  apple  stocks  can  be  bought  at  retail  at  con- 
siderably higher  prices  from  any  ordinary  nursery- 
man. This  would  be  the  source  of  supply  for  most 
amateurs. 

At  present  considerable  quantities  of  so-called 
French  stocks  are  also  used  in  this  country.  These 
are  very  similar  to  the  American  stocks.  Some 
nurserymen  consider  them  stronger  and  more  free 
from  disease  than  the  American  stocks  and  are 
therefore  willing  to  pay  higher  prices  for  them. 

Dwarf  apples  are  propagated  on  so-called  Para- 
dise and  Doucin  roots.  These  two  varieties  are 
grown  mostly  in  France,  and  are  propagated  by 
cuttings  or  layers  instead  of  by  seeds.  Their  use 
in  this  country  is  extremely  restricted  and  the  ama- 
teur will  find  it  difficult  to  secure  Doucin  or  Para- 
dise stocks  for  his  experimental  grafting.  Some  of 
the  larger  American  nurseries,  however,  which  do 


2O  BEGINNERS     GUIDE   TO   FRUIT   GROWING 

a  considerable  import  business,  will  usually  be  able 
to  supply  them. 

Pear  stocks  are  grown  very  much  like  apples.  In 
the  case  of  pears,  however,  the  supply  is  almost 
wholly  foreign,  and  a  very  large  majority  of  the 
pear  stocks  used  come  from  France.  They  are 
handled  in  the  nursery  almost  precisely  like  apple 
stocks  and  are  budded  or  root-grafted  in  the  same 
way.  In  recent  years,  a  small  supply  of  pear  stocks 
has  been  secured  from  our  southern  states  by  the 
propagation  of  the  Chinese  hybrid  varieties,  such  as 
Kieffer  and  Garber,  which  will  grow  from  cuttings 
in  a  favorable  soil  and  climate. 

Dwarf  pears  are  propagated  on  quince  roots, 
always  by  budding. 

Quinces  are  budded  on  quince  roots.  These 
stocks  practically  all  come  from  Angers,  France. 
They  can,  of  course,  be  grown  from  seed,  in  the 
same  manner  as  apple  stocks. 

Peaches  are  nearly  always  budded  on  peach  seed- 
lings. The  seed  may  be  secured  either  from  can- 
ning factories  or  from  the  professional  collectors 
of  "wild  peach"  seed.  These  wild  or  native  peaches 
are  found  growing  rather  freely  through  the  moun- 
tains of  North  Carolina,  South  Carolina,  and  Geor- 
gia, and  are  thought  to  produce  a  very  superior 
grade  of  seedlings  for  budding.  The  peach  seeds 
are  secured  in  the  fall  and  should  be  buried  in  a 
clean,  well-drained  soil  for  the  winter.  If  they 
freeze  and  thaw  a  few  times  during  the  winter  it  is 
a  distinct  advantage,  especially  in  breaking  open 
the  shells.  As  soon  as  the  garden  soil  is  dry  in  the 
spring,  the  seeds  are  sown  in  rows  3^  to  4  feet 
apart  and  6  inches  apart  in  the  row.  They  should 
make  a  growth  of  2  to  4  feet  by  the  middle  of 


PROPAGATION  21 

August,  at  which  time  they  would  be  ready  for 
budding.  Peach  stocks  can  never  be  transplanted 
without  injuring  them  so  seriously  as  to  make  them 
almost  worthless  for  further  use. 

Peaches  are  also  sometimes  propagated  on  apri- 
cot seedlings,  and  may  be  budded  on  almost  any 
species  or  variety  of  plum  seedling.  Dwarf  peaches 
may  be  produced  readily  by  tliis  method  of  work- 
ing on  any  convenient  species  of  plum.  The  one 
commonly  used  is  the  French  plum,  Pr units  ceras- 
ifcra;  a  better  dwarfing  stock,  however,  will  be 
found  in  the  native  American  plum,  Primus  amcri- 
cana,  or  the  sand  cherry,  Primus  besseyi. 

Plums  may  be  budded  on  almost  any  kind  of 
seedling  plums.  The  one  commonly  used  in  the 
nursery  is  the  French  plum,  Pruniis  ccrasifcra.  In 
the  western  states,  Primus  americana  is  more  com- 
monly used  and  has  some  advantages.  For  one 
thing,  it  is  hardier.  It  also  has  a  decided  dwarfing 
effect,  which  is  often  an  advantage.  The  sand 
cherry,  Primus  besseyi,  makes  an  excellent  dwarfing 
stock  for  most  plums. 

Plums  are  often  worked  on  peach  seedlings. 
Peach  roots  are  particularly  adapted  to  Japanese 
plums,  more  especially  when  the  orchard  is  to  be 
planted  on  warm,  sandy  soil. 

Cherries  are  nearly  always  budded  upon  cherry 
stocks,  and  these  stocks  are  extensively  imported 
from  Europe,  especially  from  France.  In  some 
cases  the  seeds  are  imported  and  the  stocks  grown 
in  this  country.  These  stocks  are  of  two  sorts,  the 
Mazzard  and  the  Mahaleb.  As  a  rule,  the  Mazzard 
stock  is  recommended  as  the  better  one,  especially 
for  the  propagation  of  sweet  cherries.  The  Maha- 
leb stock  is  said  to  be  hardier  and  easier  to  work, 


22  BEGINNERS     GUIDE   TO   FRUIT    GROWING 

and  somewhat  better  adapted  to  dwarf-growing 
sour  cherries.  On  this  account,  it  is  frequently 
used. 

BUYING  NURSERY  STOCK 

When  all  has  been  said  about  the  nursery  propa- 
gation of  stock,  and  while  it  is  understood  that 
such  work  is  often  intensely  interesting  to  the  ama- 
teur, and  while  it  is  admitted  that  it  may  sometimes 
be  worth  while,  for  special  reasons,  for  the  tree 
planter,  still  the  large  fact  remains  that  nursery 
work  can  be  done  most  economically  and  most  suc- 
cessfully by  the  experienced  nurseryman.  The 
ordinary  tree  planter  will  find  it  is  nearly  always 
best,  easiest  and  cheapest  to  buy  his  young  trees 
of  the  man  who  makes  propagation  a  profession. 
A  few  suggestions  on  the  buying  of  nursery  stock 
will  really  be  of  more  practical  value  than  any 
amount  of  instruction  in  the  methods  of  propagat- 
ing nursery  trees. 

First  let  us  consider  the  question  of  locality. 
There  is  a  common  prejudice  in  favor  of  buying 
northern  grown  trees,  the  theory  being  that  they 
are  hardier.  This  theory  has  no  foundation  what- 
ever in  fact.  If  there  is  any  preference  as  between 
northern  and  southern  grown  nursery  fruit  trees, 
then,  within  reasonable  limits,  this  preference  is 
all  on  the  side  of  the  southern  product.  The  longer 
growing  season  in  the  South  gives  opportunity  for 
the  production  of  a  larger,  heavier  tree;  and  this 
larger  and  heavier  tree  makes  the  better  growth 
when  it  is  set  in  the  orchard  row. 

A  similar  prejudice  exists  in  favor  of  buying 
locally  grown  trees,  the  argument  advanced  being 
that  they  are  better  adapted  to  the  local  climate  and 


PROPAGATION  23 

will  be  more  likely  to  succeed  in  the  orchard.  This 
argument  is  equally  spurious.  There  is  a  certain  ad- 
vantage, however,  in  dealing  with  a  local  nursery- 
man ;  but  this  advantage  lies  in  the  shorter  shipping 
distance,  the  possibility  of  sometimes  visiting  the 
nursery  in  person  to  select  the  stock,  and  in  the 
slightly  greater  ease  of  doing  business  at  short 
range. 

In  speaking  of  nurserymen  here  we  have  refer- 
ence, of  course,  to  those  men  who  are  legitimately 
in  the  business,  and  in  the  business  to  stay.  The 
common  itinerant  fruit  tree  peddler  often  represents 
a  doubtful  nursery,  more  commonly  no  nursery  at 
all,  but  rather  a  jobber  who  disposes  of  the  culls 
turned  over  to  him  by  men  who  have  too  tender  a 
conscience  to  sell  the  stuff  themselves.  It  should 
be  preached  everywhere  as  a  part  of  the  gospel  of 
horticulture,  that  nobody  should  ever  patronize  the 
traveling  fruit-tree  agent  on  any  account. 

It  used  to  be  customary  to  classify  fruit  trees  in 
the  nursery  as  first  grade,  second  grade,  and  third 
grade.  While  this  classification  is  still  used  to 
some  extent,  it  is  inexact,  difficult  to  use  and  gen- 
erally unsatisfactory.  A  better  way,  and  one  now 
increasingly  common,  is  to  grade  the  trees  accord- 
ing to  their  size.  Either  the  height  or  the  diameter 
at  the  soil  or  both  these  measures  will  be  given. 
Thus  a  nurseryman  will  offer  Elberta  peach  trees 
in  the  following  grades :  6  feet  and  up,  5  to  6  feet, 
4  to  5  feet,  3  to  4  feet,  adding  perhaps  June  buds 
1/^2  to  2.^/2  feet.  In  buying  any  of  these  trees,  it  is 
usually  best  to  select  the  heaviest  and  largest,  or 
perhaps  as  often  to  take  the  first  grade  below  the 
extreme  largest.  The  very  light  grades  should  be 
energetically  avoided  in  any  event.  Where  orders 


24  BEGINNERS     GUIDE   TO   FRUIT   GROWING 

of  considerable  size  are  pending,  many  good  nurs- 
erymen are  glad  to  send  samples  of  the  trees 
quoted,  and  this  is  a  most  excellent  precaution  on 
the  part  of  the  buyer. 

It  is  customary,  further,  for  the  nurseryman  to 
represent,  and  to  some  extent  to  guarantee,  that  the 
stock  sold  shall  be  clean,  straight,  well  branched 
and  free  from  all  insects  and  fungous  diseases.  The 
freedom  from  insects  and  fungous  diseases  is  usu- 
ally further  certified  by  an  inspectors  label  supplied 
with  each  shipment.  While  the  inspection  back  of 
this  certificate  may  or  may  not  have  a  salutary  in- 
fluence, it  is  an  open  question  whether  the  label 
itself  has  any  value  whatever  for  the  tree  buyer. 

It  has  been  customary  in  times  recently  past  to 
buy  all  apple  trees  from  the  nursery  at  two  years 
old.  Still  earlier  in  the  history  of  American  horti- 
culture 3-year-old.  4-year-old  and  more-year-old 
trees  were  frequently  transplanted.  The  tendency 
has  been  constantly  toward  the  use  of  younger 
trees,  and  this  tendency  has  been  so  strong  of  late 
years  that  today  i-year-old  apple  trees  are  insisted 
on  by  the  majority  of  the  most  expert  fruit  men. 
The  writer  owns  to  a  very  emphatic  preference  for 
the  i-year  tree.  It  is  much  more  plastic  under  the 
hands  of  the  orchardist,  more  readily  forms  a  sym- 
metrical head,  and  shows  a  smaller  percentage  of 
loss  in  most  plantings.  Certainly  no  experienced 
tree  man  would  today  use  apple  trees  over  2  vears 
old. 

The  same  tendency  to  the  use  of  younger  trees 
is  visible  in  all  other  lines  of  fruit  planting.  Pear 
trees  are  still  usually  transplanted  at  two  years  of 
age,  though  Kieffer,  Le  Conte  and  Garber  form  dis- 
tinct exceptions  to  this  rule,  being  nearly  always 


PROPAGATION  25 

set  out  at  one  year  old.  But  even  strong-growing 
varieties  of  the  common  European  pear  are  now 
often  sold  from  the  nursery  at  the  end  of  the  first 
year's  growth. 

Peaches  should  never  under  any  circumstances 
be  bought  from  the  nursery  at  a  greater  age  than 
one  year.  On  the  other  hand  the  so-called  "June 
buds"  of  the  nurserymen  represent  only  a  half- 
year's  growth.  While  it  may  possibly  be  permis- 
sible to  use  these  in  case  of  a  great  emergency,  it 
will  be  better  to  avoid  them  whenever  the  usual 
one-year  trees  can  be  had. 

Plums  vary  so  much  in  character  that  it  is  diffi- 
cult to  make  any  rule,  except  the  general  one  in 
favor  of  young  trees.  Very  slow-growing  varieties 
may  well  be  left  for  two  years'  growth  in  the  nurs- 
ery row,  while  vigorous-growing  kinds  are  better 
transplanted  at  one  year  old.  The  Japanese  varie- 
ties should  always  be  planted  out  when  one  year 
old. 

Even  quinces  do  better  if  very  strong  one-year 
trees  can  be  used.  As  the  quince  is  slow  growing 
by  nature,  it  is  hard  to  get  trees  heavy  enough  for 
nursery  sales  at  one  year  except  on  the  best  of  soil, 
and  with  the  best  of  treatment.  But  such  condi- 
tions are  precisely  those  which  favor  the  interest  of 
the  tree  buyer,  who  should  always  prefer  the  heavy 
one-year-old  quince  trees  when  he  can  get  them. 

Something  is  said  elsewhere  about  fall  planting 
versus  spring  planting  of  orchards.  For  fall  plant- 
ing it  is  obligatory  that  the  trees  be  selected  and 
bought  in  midsummer  or  even  earlier.  But  early 
buying  is  a  very  important  matter  in  any  case,  and 
June  or  July  is  never  too  early  to  place  orders  for 
trees  to  be  used  the  following  spring.  Such  orders 


26          BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO  FRUIT  GROWING 

may  be  delivered  from  the  nursery  in  late  fall,  the 
trees  being  heeled  in  for  the  winter,  or  the  trees 
may  be  stored  in  the  nurseryman's  storage  house 
and  delivered  at  planting  time  in  the  spring.  Early 
deliveries  are  to  be  especially  recommended  what- 
ever may  be  the  planting  plans. 


II 

PLANTING 

THE  proper  distances  for  planting  trees  can  be 
given  with  some  definiteness,  for  though  these  dis- 
tances are  varied  considerably  by  different  planters, 
experience  shows  that  close  planting  is  disastrous 
to  the  orchard,  while  too  wide  planting  is  a  great 
waste  of  space.  The  optimum  distances  as  given 
in  the  following  table  should  be  pretty  closely 
adhered  to. 

PLANTING  DISTANCES 

Mini-  Opti-  Maxi- 
mum mum  mum 
Standard    apples    on    very 

strong  soil 35  40  50 

Standard    apples    on    me- 
dium soil 33  35  40 

Dwarf   apples    on    Doucin 

stocks     12  i6l/2  24 

Dwarf    apples     on     Para- 
dise stocks 6  10  15 

Standard  pears 20  28  30 

Dwarf  pears 10  12  20 

Quinces   6  12  15 

Peaches    TO  15  20 

Plums    15  20  30 

Apricots 20  25  30 

Sweet  cherries   25  30  35 

Sour  cherries   12  i6*/2  25 


28          BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO  FRUIT  GROWING 

When  double  planting  is  practiced  as  described 
below,  apples  should  be  set  either  16^2  x  i6l/2  feet, 
to  be  thinned  out  to  33  feet,  or  20  x  20  feet  to  be 
thinned  out  to  40  x  40  feet.  \Yhen  apples  are  inter- 
planted  with  peaches  or  dwarf  apples  the  same  dis- 
tances should  be  observed.  Pears  interplanted  with 
dwarf  pears,  dwarf  apples,  sour  cherries  or  plums, 
should  be  placed  25  x  25  feet,  with  the  temporary 
trees  between,  making  the  original  planting  i2l/2 
x  12^2  feet.  In  such  a  plantation,  however,  every 
third  longitudinal  row  of  fillers  will  need  to  be  re- 
moved at  a  comparatively  early  age  so  as  to  allow 
the  passage  of  spraying  machinery. 

The  following  table  shows  the  number  of  trees 
required  to  plant  an  acre  when  placed  at  various 
distances : 

NUMBER  OF  TREES   TO   THE   ACRE 

6x6  feet,  1,210  trees 

8x8"  680      " 

10  x  10     "  435      " 

12   X    12        "  302        " 

12Y2    X    I2i/>"  2/8       " 

15  X  15   "  193   " 

16  x  16  170 

i6y2  x  i6y2 "       1 60  " 

20  X  20   "  1 08   " 

24  x  24  75 

25  x  25  70 
3°  x  3°  48 
33  *  33  40 
35  ^  35  35 
40  x  40  27 

45  x  45   "  2I   " 

50  x  50   "  17   " 


PLANTING  29 

For  setting  out  an  interplanted  orchard,  say  ap- 
ples filled  with  peaches,  trees  16^2  feet  apart,  there 
will  be  required  40  apples  and  120  peach  trees  to 
each  acre.  If  the  trees  are  to  be  set  20  x  20  feet  the 
number  of  apple  trees  will  be  27,  and  the  number 
of  peach  trees  as  fillers  will  be  81. 

In  order  to  find  the  number  of  trees  required  to 
plant  an  acre  at  any  other  distances,  multiply  the 
distance  between  trees  in  one  direction  by  the  dis- 
tance in  the  other  direction  and  divide  43,560  by  the 
product.  For  example,  if  it  be  desired  to  set  a  plan- 
tation with  trees  12  x  32  feet,  the  required  number 
would  be  computed  thus : 

43,560 -f-  (12x32)  =  113  trees  to  each  acre 

DOUBLE    PLANTING    AND    INTERPLANTING 

When  a  new  orchard  is  set  out,  say,  with  apple 
trees  40  feet  apart,  the  ground  is  only  partially 
occupied.  In  fact,  the  trees  do  not  use  more  than 
one-fourth  of  the  ground  during  the  first  10  years 
of  their  growth;  for  another  10  or  15  years,  they 
will  be  using  one-half  the  land,  more  .or  less.  O.i 
the  other  hand,  if  the  trees  are  planted  16  or  20 
feet  apart,  so  as  to  economize  space  and  use  the 
soil  to  greater  advantage  during  the  early  years  of 
growth,  they  presently  crowd  one  another  and  are 
greatly  damaged  by  such  close  planting.  These 
are  very  serious  situations  and  practical  orchardists 
have  made  considerable  effort  to  meet  the  difficulty 
in  various  ways,  usually  by  double  planting  or  in- 
terplanting. 

Double  planting  consists  in  putting  out  the  trees 
at  one-half  the  required  permanent  distance;  thus, 
if  it  is  desired  to  have  the  trees  stand  finally  40  feet 


UEGIXXERS     GUIDE   TO    FRUIT    GROWING 


apart,  the  original  planting  is  made  with  the  trees 
20  feet  apart.  When  crowding  first  begins,  alter- 
nate rows  are  removed  lengthwise,  in  one  direction. 
This  gives  relief  for  a  considerable  time.  Later,  an- 
other portion  of  the  trees  is  removed,  cutting 
crosswise  of  the  field.  Thus,  in  two  or  three  sue- 


FIG.    13 — A   WELL-PLANTED  PLUM  ORCHARD 

cessive  thinnings,  the  orchard  is  reduced  from  its 
original  stand  to  one-fourth  of  the  original  number 
of  trees. 

The  system  of  interplanting  is  the  same  as  double 
planting,  except  that  the  temporary  trees  are  of 
varieties  different  from  the  permanent  trees.  In  the 
case  of  apple  orchards,  these  may  be  simply  earlier- 
bearing  varieties,  or  they  may  be  dwarf  trees,  or 
they  may  be  peach  trees,  or  almost  any  other  kind. 

Interplanting  may,  in  fact,  be  reduced  to  three 
fairly  distinct  types.  In  the  first  type,  there  are 


PLANTING  31 

two  varieties,  as  two  sorts  of  apples,  or  two  sorts 
of  pears,  both  of  one  kind  of  fruit  placed  together. 
In  practically  all  cases  there  will  be  one-fourth  per- 
manent trees  and  three-fourths  temporary  trees. 
The  temporary  trees  should  be  smaller  in  habit  of 
growth  and  earlier  in  habit  of  bearing. 

In  the  second  type  of  interplanting,  two  different 
species  or  kinds  of  fruit  are  used  ;  usually  permanent 
apple  trees  are  interplanted  with  peach  or  plum, 
sometimes  with  pear,  or  cherry  trees. 

The  third  type  consists  of  a  still  further  filling  of 
the  orchard,  in  which  three  different  types  of  fruit 
are  used.  Such  a  plantation  consists  of  (i)  perma- 
nent apple  trees,  (2)  temporary  fillers,  such  as  pear 
or  cherry,  and  (3)  underplanted  rows  of  bush 
fruits,  such  as  currants  or  gooseberries.  Such 
triple-planted  plantations  are  not  uncommon  nor 
always  unsuccessful.  Strong  soils,  high  feeding, 
and  constant  attention  are  required  to  get  good  re- 
sults from  such  a  complicated  arrangement. 

The  advantages  of  these  double-planting  and  in- 
terplanting methods  are  emphatic.  Space  is  greatly 
economized,  and  as  fruit  land  is  often  very  high 
priced,  this  economy  means  a  good  deal  in  cash. 
Fertilizer  is  also  economized  to  a  greater  or  less  ex- 
tent. The  expenses  of  cultivation,  etc.,  are  also 
proportionately  reduced.  Another  advantage  of 
considerable  importance  in  many  cases  is  that  the 
interplanted  trees  and  bush  fruits  come  into  bearing 
earlier  than  the  permanent  trees  and  put  the  plan- 
tation on  a  remunerative  basis  much  sooner. 

There  are  disadvantages,  of  course :  thickly 
planted  plantations  are  difficult  to  manage,  difficult 
to  cultivate,  and  especially  difficult  of  access  with 
spraying  machinery.  They  require  much  more 


32          BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO  FRUIT  GROWING 

careful  attention ;  it  is  a  great  deal  easier  to  succeed 
with  one  crop  growing  on  a  piece  of  land  than  with 
two  or  three  different  crops  on  the  same  land,  espe- 
cially when  these  different  crops  have  somewhat 
different  requirements.  One  of  the  great  objec- 
tions to  the  planting  of  apples  and  peaches  on  the 
same  land  is  commonly  said  to  be  that  they  require 
different  quantities  and  kinds  of  fertilizers.  While 
this  objection  appears  to  be  rather  strained,  the 
principle  on  which  it  is  founded  is  correct.  The 
chief  practical  objection  in  experience  arises  from 
the  fact  that  many  planters  do  not  thin  out  the 
orchard  soon  enough ;  the  trees  are  allowed  to  stand 
until  they  may  seriously  injure  one  another.  This 
is  a  genuine  danger,  though  it  is  not  the  fault  of  the 
system,  but  is  due  simply  to  its  misapplication. 

LAYING  OUT  THE  LAND 

When  a  piece  of  ground  is  nicely  prepared  and 
ready  to  plant  (it  should  be  left  with  a  smooth  clean 
surface,  as  a  rough  surface  interferes  seriously  with 
the  accuracy  of  the  layout),  it  should  be  staked  off, 
placing  a  stake  at  each  point  where  a  tree  is  to  be 
planted.  This  should  be  done  as  accurately  as  pos- 
sible. While  it  is  doubtless  true  that  trees  will 
grow  as  well  in  crooked  rows  as  in  straight  ones, 
yet  the  straight  rows  look  a  whole  lot  better  and 
are  actually  somewhat  easier  to  cultivate.  Anyone 
who  has  sense  and  self-respect  enough  to  plant 
fruit  trees  at  all  will  certainly  want  to  present  the 
most  orderly  and  attractive  plantation  possible.  A 
surveyor's  instrument  and  a  chain  will  give  the 
most  satisfactory  layout  if  reasonably  manipulated. 
A  simpler  way,  working  without  special  tools,  is 


PLANTING  33 

to  lay  one  straight  row  along  one  side  or  down  the 
middle  of  the  tract,  straightening  it  by  careful 
sighting  and  spacing  the  trees  accurately  by  re- 
peated measurements.  For  making  these  measure- 
ments nothing  is  better  than  a  light  wooden  pole 
carefully  cut  to  the  required  length. 

When  the  first  long  row  is  properly  staked  out  a 
cross  row  should  be  established  at  right  angles  to 
it,  and  this  cross  row  spaced  and  staked  with  the 
same  care.  From  these  20  rt. 

two  base  lines  the  remain-  POL.E 

der  of  the  field  may  be  laid 
off  rapidly  and  with  very 
little  trouble,  unless  indeed 
the  ground  is  very  rough 
and  hilly. 

The  best  way  to  do  this 
is  to  take  two  light  poles 
cut  to  the  length  and  the 
breadth  of  the  tree  spaces, 
say  20  feet  each  if  the 

trees  are  to  stand  20  x  20     ,  u 

feet,    or   20   and    32    feet 

respectively  if  the  trees  FIG'  14~HOW  T0  LAY  OFF  LAND 
are  going  in  at  20  x  32  feet.  Place  these  poles  on  the 
ground  as  shown  in  Figure  14  with  one  pole  against 
the  second  tree  in  the  base  row  and  the  other  ended 
against  the  second  tree  in  the  cross  row.  Then 
bring  the  two  free  ends  of  the  poles  together,  and 
where  they  meet  at  the  point,  d,  is  the  place  for  the 
next  tree.  Set  a  stake  here,  move  the  poles  for- 
ward, using  this  point,  d,  as  a  starting  point  for  the 
next  measurement,  and  proceed  as  before.  After 
a  row  of  stakes  has  been  set  in  this  way  the  layout 
should  be  gone  over  again,  carefully  sighted,  and 


34  BEGINNERS     GUIDE  TO   FRUIT   GROWING 

the  row  perfectly  straightened.  If  each  successive 
row  is  carefully  aligned  in  this  manner  the  final 
result,  except  on  very  hilly  ground,  will  be  satisfactory. 

PLANTING  OUT  THE  TREES 

The  job  next  in  order  will  be  to  dig  the  holes. 
These  will  ordinarily  be  2  feet  in  diameter  and  16 
inches  deep,  these  dimensions  varying  somewhat 
with  the  size  of  the  trees  and  the  character  of  the 
soil.  The  harder  the  soil  the  larger  should  the 
holes  be.  In  order  that  the  tree  when  it  is  planted 
may  occupy  exactly  the  point  established  for  it  in 
the  setting  of  the  peg  it  is  necessary  to  have 

a  b  c 


FIG.   15 — TREE-PLANTING  BOARD 

recourse  to  the  planting  board  or  tree-jack.  This 
simple  device,  which  has  been  described  and  illus- 
trated a  thousand  times,  is  shown  once  more  in 
Figure  15.  It  consists  of  a  light  but  strong  board 
about  4  feet  long  and  4  inches  wide,  cut  with  a 
notch  in  either  end  and  with  a  third  notch  in  the 
exact  middle. 

To  use  this  tree-jack  it  is  laid  on  the  ground  with 
the  middle  notch  snugly  set  upon  the  peg  which 
marks  the  position  of  the  prospective  tree.  Then 
two  light  stakes  are  driven  in  the  two  respective 
end  notches,  after  which  the  jack  may  be  taken  to 
the  next  peg  and  the  transaction  repeated.  After 
setting  the  two  pegs  for  the  ends  of  the  planting 
board  the  hole  may  be  dug,  the  center  peg  being 
taken  up  and  thrown  aside.  Then  when  the  holes 


PLANTING 


35 


are  all  ready  each  tree  may  be  placed  precisely  in 
its  correct  position  by  bringing-  back  the  planting 
board,  replacing  it  on  the  two  end  pegs  in  its 
former  position  and  holding  the  stem  of  the  little 
tree  firmly  in  the  center  notch  while  the  roots  are 
covered  and  trodden  in.  This  simple  method  is  now 
almost  universally  used. 


FIG.    16 — USE  OF  PLANTING   BOARD 


Each  tree  should  be  carefully  pruned  before 
planting.  All  broken  roots  and  branches  should 
first  be  removed.  The  roots  may  then  be  pruned 
enough  to  make  them  symmetrical.  Any  long  and 
straggling  roots  should  be  cut  off.  As  a  rule  tree 
planters  are  too  much  afraid  to  cut  back  the  roots 
of  nursery  trees  at  planting  time.  The  top  of  each 


36          BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO  FRUIT  GROWING 

tree  should  be  still  more  severely  pruned.  The 
least  that  should  be  done  with  any  ordinary  nurs- 
ery tree  is  to  cut  back  the  top  and  all  side  branches 
so  as  to  leave  only  stubs  I  to  3  inches  in  length. 
In  planting  one-year-old  trees  of  most  sorts  it  is 
still  better  to  cut  off  absolutely  all  branches  and 
further  to  cut  back  the  main  stem  to  about  the  point 
where  the  head  is  to  be  formed.  Something  more 
is  said  about  this  matter  in  the  chapter  on  pruning, 
but  it  may  be  noticed  here  that  the  most  experi- 
enced fruit  growers  of  the  present  day  shorten  in 
their  young  trees  in  this  manner  very  drastically  at 
planting.  Young  apple  trees  are  commonly  headed 
back  to  straight  sticks  18  inches  high,  peach,  plum 
and  pear  trees  to  12  inches  or  even  to  6  inches. 
With  healthy  i-year-old  trees  this  practice  gives 
the  very  best  results. 

Some  further  remarks  on  the  selection  of  nurs- 
ery stock  will  be  found  in  Chapter  I. 

FALL  VS.   SPRING   PLANTING 

At  this  point  attention  should  be  given  to  the 
common  query  as  to  whether  fall  planting  or  spring 
planting  is  advisable.  In  the  southern  states  plant- 
ers often  secure  a  convenient  compromise  of  this 
question  by  doing  their  planting  during  the  winter. 
In  any  latitude  where  there  are  frequent  periods 
during  the  winter  when  the  ground  contains  so 
little  frost  that  planting  may  easily  be  done,  the 
winter  is  almost  the  ideal  planting  time.  In  north- 
ern climates  spring  planting  is  the  common  prac- 
tice, and  perhaps  the  very  best  general  rule  is  to 
set  out  the  young  trees  at  the  earliest  moment  in 
the  spring,  remembering  that  the  land  must  first 


PLANTING  37 

be  thoroughly  prepared.  Late  spring  planting  is 
not  exactly  dangerous,  but  it  is  more  or  less  risky, 
and  the  later  the  planting  is  made  the  greater  is 
the  risk  involved. 

On  the  other  hand  fall  planting  has  incontestable 
advantages.  Work  is  not  so  rushing  and  labor  can 
be  managed  much  more  effectively.  Trees  well 
planted  in  the  fall  make  new  roots  to  a  greater  or 
less  extent  and  are  ready  for  real  business  at  the 
first  call  of  spring.  The  best  general  statement 
that  can  be  made  of  the  case  is  to  say  that  fall 
planting  is  desirable  when  all  conditions  are  favor- 
able— when  good,  mature  trees  can  be  had,  when 
the  soil  is  in  first-class  condition,  and  when  a 
workmanlike  job  can  be  assured  by  the  planters. 
Failing  in  any  of  these  essential  conditions,  spring 
planting  will  be  safer. 


Ill 

MANAGEMENT 

THE  management  of  an  orchard  or  a  fruit  garden 
consists,  of  course,  of  all  the  processes  necessary  to 
keep  the  trees  and  plants  in  health,  to  keep  them 
growing,  and  to  make  them  fruitful.  Certain  of 
these  processes,  as  pruning  and  spraying,  involve  so 
many  unusual  points  that  we  have  found  it  conveni- 
ent to  treat  of  them  in  separate  chapters.  In  the 
present  chapter  we  will  discuss  only  cultivation, 
the  use  of  cover  crops,  and  fertilizers. 

Orchard  management  is  also  sometimes  made  to 
include  the  harvesting,  storing  and  marketing  of 
the  fruit ;  but  these  highly  important  operations 
really  belong  together  and  should  be  separated  from 
the  discussions  of  fruit  growing.  They  may  be 
grouped  together  preferably  under  the  term  "com- 
mercial pomology,"  which  subject  has  already  been 
treated  in  a  book  by  itself.* 

CULTIVATION 

There  has  been  a  good  deal  of  controversy  in 
regard  to  the  value  of  cultivation  in  orchards.  It 
may  be  said,  however,  without  reservation,  that  the 
great  weight  of  authoritv  and  practice  is  on  the  side 
of  cultivation  and  against  all  methods  of  non-culti- 
vation. The  practice  of  growing  fruit  trees  in  sod 
land  without  special  care,  a  very  common  practice, 

*\Vangh's  Fruit  Harvesting,  Storing,  MarKcting.  Orange 
Judd  Co.,  New  York. 


MANAGEMENT  4! 

indeed,  throughout  the  country,  is  wholly  indefensi- 
ble. It  has  not  a  respectable  apologist  in  the  field. 
Those  who  dissent  from  the  accepted  method  of 
cultivation  usually  make  a  plea  for  what  is  known 
as  the  mulch  method.  This  method  deserves  a  brief 
examination,  though  not  much  more. 

It  is  claimed  that  trees,  apple  trees  especially, 
growing  on  rich  soil  of  high  water-holding  capacity, 
may  be  handled  more  cheaply  and  easily  by  leaving 
them  in  sod  than  by  keeping  them  cultivated.  The 
land  is  sown  down  to  blue  grass,  red  top  and  clover 
in  the  ordinary  manner.  This  grass  is  cut  two  or 
three  times  a  year  and  is  drawn  about  the  roots  of 
the  fruit  trees.  In  this  respect  the  mulch  method  is 
radically  different  from  the  robbery  method  wherein 
the  hay  is  carted  to  the  barn.  The  mulch  men, 
moreover,  being  fruit  growers  and  not  live  stock 
growers,  supply  their  trees  with  whatever  addi- 
tional fertilizer  may  be  required  ;  and  in  instances 
where  the  method  is  honestly  and  intelligently  prac- 
ticed, such  men  add  more  or  less  mulch  to  the  land 
from  other  sources. 

It  is  claimed  that  the  mulch  method  is  easier  and 
cheaper  than  cultivation,  that  it  may  be  used  on 
hillsides  so  steep  as  to  preclude  cultivation,  and  that 
it  produces  fruit  of  higher  color  and  better  keeping 
quality  than  clean  culture  methods  do.  The  objec- 
tions to  it  are  that  it  induces  surface  rooting  of  the 
trees,  which  is  dangerous,  that  it  keeps  the  soil  in 
a  poor  physical  condition,  that  it  does  not  use  the 
fertilizer  to  so  good  advantage,  and  especially  that 
the  grass  robs  the  trees  of  large  quantities  of  much- 
needed  water. 

As  already  stated,  the  best  authorities  in  this 
country,  both  scientific  and  practical  men,  almost 


42  BEGINNERS     GUIDE   TO   FRUIT   GROWING 

unanimously  favor  the  system  of  cultivation.  The 
opinion  in  favor  of  cultivation  is  emphatic  so  far  as 
peach  and  plum  trees  are  concerned ;  it  is  less  so 
with  regard  to  apples ;  and  even  the  most  advanced 
exponents  of  culture  will  admit  that  pear  trees 
sometimes  need  to  be  checked  in  growth  by  having 
the  land  sown  down  to  grass. 

The  cultivation  system  is  practiced  about  as  fol- 
lows :  The  land  is  plowed  early  every  spring  as  soon 
as  it  is  dry  enough  for  cultivation.  This  plowing  is 
fairly  thorough,  which  does  not  mean,  of  course,  a 
deep  and  careful  turning  of  the  soil  as  is  accom- 
plished in  the  growing  of  fine  market  garden  crops. 
In  fact,  in  many  good  soils  this  spring  cultivation 
is  given  with  the  spading  harrow  rather  than 
with  the  plow.  The  second  cultivation  will  fol- 
low about  two  weeks  later,  and  will  be  given 
either  with  the  disk  harrow  or  the  spring-tooth 
harrow.  If  the  land  is  in  particularly  good  con- 
dition an  even  lighter  implement  may  be  used,  per- 
haps the  ordinary  spike-tooth  or  smoothing  harrow. 
Subsequent  cultivations  will  follow  at  intervals  of 
10  days  to  two  weeks  until  the  day  of  sowing  the 
cover  crop.  The  purpose  of  these  cultivations  is 
to  preserve  the  light  dust  mulch  over  the  surface 
of  the  soil.  This  dust  mulch  is  very  useful  in  pre- 
venting the  evaporation  of  moisture.  These-  later 
cultivations  can  best  be  given  with  a  light  smooth- 
ing harrow. 

The  later  cultivations  in  the  orchard,  being  ap- 
plied only  to  the  surface  and  being  accomplished 
with  the  lightest  possible  tools,  may  be  given  very 
rapidly.  The  harrow  should  be  wide  and  light  and 
should  cover  considerable  space  at  each  round  of 
the  team.  It  is  possible  to  buy  special  orchard  tools 


MANAGEMENT 


43 


for  work  under  the  trees.  An  adjustment  which  is 
often  applied  to  disk  harrows,  spring-tooth  harrows 
and  smoothing  harrows  is  a  rigid  middle  section 
inserted  so  as  to  extend  the  two  halves  of  the  orig- 
inal implement  out  under  the  trees  while  allowing 
the  horses  to  walk  in  the  middle  of  the  tree  space. 
This  is  illustrated  for  the  disk  harrow  in  Figure  20. 
With  such  modern  conveniences  as  these,  it  is  possi- 


FIG.   19 — THE  HORSE  HOE  FOR  CLOSE  CULTIVATION 

ble  t<5  give  thorough  cultivation  at  low  cost  and  at 
the  same  time  to  work  closely  under  the  branches 
of  low-headed  fruit  trees. 


THE   COVER   CROP 


The  term  cover  crop  is  applied  to  any  annual  crop 
sown  between  the  trees  and  for  their  special  benefit. 
It  is  usually  sown  after  the  regular  period  of  cultiva- 
tion, that  is,  between  July  15  and  August  i,  though 


44  BEGINNERS     GUIDE   TO   ±-RUIT   GROWING 

sometimes  later.  It  is  allowed  to  stand  on  the 
ground  until  the  following  spring,  when  the  entire 
crop  is  turned  under  for  the  benefit  of  the  land 
at  the  time  of  the  spring  plowing.  In  this  respect 
it  is  very  different  from  truck  crops,  which  are 
sometimes  grown  between  the  rows  of  young  trees. 

The  cover  crop  is  grown  only  in  those  orchards 
which  are  cultivated  during  the  early  part  of  the 
summer.  The  seed  is  usually  broadcasted,  though 
sometimes  it  is  drilled  in.  The  drilling  method  is 
particularly  suited  to  soy  beans  and  cowpeas. 

Several  distinct  services  are  performed  by  the 
cover  crop.  The  most  important  are  as  follows : 

(1)  The  cover  crop  helps  to  check  the  growth  of 
wood   during  the   late   summer.      In    this    way    it 
prevents  the  soft  autumn  growth  which  sometimes 
does  not   ripen  well   and   is  therefore   injured  by 
winter  freezing.     This  autumn  check  upon  wood 
growth    comes   chiefly   from   the   tendency   of   the 
cover  crop  to  take  up  from  the  soil  a  considerable 
portion  of  water  which  would  otherwise  go  to  the 
trees.    Acting  in  this  way,  it  may  become  an  actual 
detriment    to     the    trees,     especially     in     seasons 
when  a  heavy  crop  of  fruit  is  to  be  harvested  late 
in  the  fall  and  after  an  insufficient  rainfall.    Under 
such  circumstances  it  will  be  better  to  delay  the 
sowing  of  the  cover  crop  somewhat.     In  an  emer- 
gency it  might  even  be  wise  to  cut  the  cover  crop 
with  a  mower,  to  roll  it  down  with  a  roller  or  to 
check  its  growth  in  some  other  manner. 

(2)  The    cover    crop    often    saves    considerable 
amounts  of  fertilizer.    Where  soluble  fertilizing  ele- 
ments are  left  in  the  soil  they  are  always  subject  to 
loss  during  fall  and  spring  through  being  carried 
down  into  the  soil.    They  are  dissolved  by  the  rains 


MANAGEMENT  45 

and  drained  away  out  of  reach  of  the  trees.  When 
the  cover  crop  is  growing,  these  fertilizers  are  tem- 
porarily taken  up  by  this  cover-crop  to  be  subse- 
quently made  again  available  when  the  cover  crop 
decays  in  the  soil.  This  service  is  particularly  well 
rendered  by  such  a  crop  as  winter  vetch,  which 
grows  nearly  all  winter. 

(3)  The  cover  crop  saves  erosion  of  the  soil. 
Many  orchard  soils  wash  badly,  especially  in  early 
spring.  This  difficulty  is  made  one  of  the  chief 
arguments  against  cultivating  orchards.  The  dam- 


FIG.    20 — EXTENSION*  DISK  HARROW 

age  can  be  largely  avoided  by  the  use  of  some  cover 
crop  such  as  winter  vetch,  which  grows  at  a  very 
low  temperature,  and  which  holds  its  place  through- 
out the  winter. 

(4)  The  cover  crop  adds  humus  or  vegetable 
matter  to  the  soil.  This  addition  is  extremely  im- 
portant. One  of  the  most  serious  defects  of  the 
tillage  system  is  that  it  tends  to  deplete  this  supply 
of  vegetable  matter.  This  tendency  may  be  wholly 
corrected  by  the  proper  use  of  cover  crops. 


46          BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO  FRUIT  GROWING 

(5)  The  cover  crop  may  add  nitrogen  to  the  soil. 
Such  leguminous  crops  as  peas,  beans,  cowpeas,  soy- 
beans, vetch,  alfalfa,  and  clover  collect  nitrogen 
from  the  air.  This  nitrogen  finally  becomes  avail- 
able for  the  use  of  the  trees  when  the  cover  crop  is 
plowed  under  and  rotted.  Inasmuch  as  nitrogen  is 
the  most  expensive  of  the  fertilizing  elements  when 
bought  in  the  market,  this  economy  may  prove  to  be 
of  considerable  financial  weight. 

The  choice  of  a  cover  crop  depends  upon  many 
local  conditions.  The  leguminous  crops  will  be  given 
preference  wherever  possible  on  account  of  their 
ability  to  supply  some  nitrogen.  There  are  many 
circumstances,  however,  which  lead  to  the  selection 
of  other  kinds  of  cover  crops.  It  is  useless  to  sow 
clover  or  alfalfa,  for  instance,  on  certain  soils  on 
which  they  will  not  succeed.  It  is  necessary  in 
order  to  get  a  good  stand  of  clover  or  of  alfalfa  or 
of  any  other  leguminous  crop  that  the  soil  shall 
be  sweet  and  that  it  shall  be  properly  inoculated 
with  the  bacteria  with  which  these  particular  crops 
are  associated.  In  many  cases  it  is  worth  while  to 
supply  the  land  with  lime  when  cover  crops  are  to 
be  grown.  In  some  cases  an  inoculation  with  bac- 
teria will  be  found  worth  while.  In  a  good  many 
cases,  however,  the  fruit  grower  will  have  recourse 
to  other  crops,  especially  buckwheat,  which  do  not 
require  such  special  preparations.  Buckwheat  is, 
in  fact,  one  of  the  best  of  all  cover  crops  in  the 
northeastern  states,  and  for  several  reasons.  It  may 
be  successfully  grown  at  a  late  period,  seed  can 
easily  be  had  at  a  reasonable  price,  it  makes  a  good 
stand  and  a  heavy  crop,  it  leaves  the  soil  in  excellent 
physical  condition,  and  it  adds  a  large  amount  of 
humus  to  the  soil. 


MANAGEMENT 


47 


The  cover  crop  should  be  plowed  under  as  early 
in  the  spring  as  cultivation  can  be  given  in  the 
orchard.  This  will  be  the  deepest  and  most  thor- 
ough plowing  of  the  year.  In  fact,  in  most  instances 
it  will  be  the  only  time  of  the  year  when  the  plow 


FIG.   21 — COVER  CROP  OF  BUCKWHEAT 

will  be  used  in  the  orchard.     The  following  table 
will  show  the  usual 


QUANTITY  OF  SEED  TO  THE  ACRE 


Kind  of  Seed  Quantity 

Mammoth  clover,  pounds  12 
Common       red       clover, 

pounds  i 2 

Crimson  clover,  pounds  15 

Alsike  clover,  pounds  12 

Alfalfa,  pounds  20 

Cowpea.  bushels  :/^~  2 


Cost 
3O-4OC  pound 

25~35C  pound 
2O-3OC  pound 
25~3OC  pound 
25~3oc  pound 
$3.oo-$5.oobushel 


48          BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO  FRUIT  GROWING 

Kind  of  Seed  Quantity  Cost 

Soy  bean,  bushels  iJ/2-  2  $3. oo-$5.oo bushel 

Summer  vetch,  bushels  il/2  $3. 5o-$4.oo bushel 

Winter  vetch,  bushel  i  $6.oo-$7.5o  bushel 

Canada  pea,  bushels  il/2  $2.oo-$3.oo bushel 

Buckwheat,  bushel  i  $i.5o-$2.oo  bushel 

Rye,  bushels  il/>  $i.5o-$2.oo bushel 

Barley,  bushels  1^/2-2  $i. 75-^2.50  bushel 
Barley  and  peas,  bushel, 

each  i 

THE  USE  OF  FERTILIZERS 

There  has  been  a  sort  of  blind  assumption  preva- 
lent among  farmers  that  fruit  trees  need  little  or 
no  fertilizer.  Such  a  misunderstanding-  might  be 
explained  if  it  were  localized  in  the  middle  west, 
where  fertilizers  are  not  fashionable,  but  it  is  harder 
to  see  why  this  delusion  should  wax  strongest  in 
those  very  regions  where  the  efficacy  of  fertilizers 
is  generally  unquestioned.  The  fact  is  that  both 
science  and  experience  argue  that  fruit  plantations 
need  regular  and  liberal  feeding,  the  same  as  any 
other  agricultural  crop.  If  the  exact  requirements 
of  fruit  trees  in  this  respect  are  not  so  well  under- 
stood as  are  the  requirements  of  tobacco,  for  ex- 
ample, it  is  because  the  subject  is  really  a  more 
difficult  one. 

Barnyard  manure  is  the  alpha  and  too  often  the 
omega  of  farm  fertilizers,  and  is  rather  frequently 
applied  to  orchards.  It  is  much  better  than  none 
at  all,  and  though  not  well  adapted  to  this  purpose, 
can  be  used  to  advantage  in  limited  amounts.  It 
contains  an  excess  proportion  of  nitrogen,  which 
gives  it  the  effect  of  producing  a  rank  and  excessive 
growth  of  wood,  often  at  the  expense  of  fruit  bear- 


MANAGEMENT  49 

ing.  Still  the  promotion  of  a  more  vigorous  wood 
growth  is  precisely  what  is  needed  in  many 
orchards,  and  in  such  cases  barnyard  manure  might 
be  the  very  thing  to  be  prescribed.  It  has  the  great 
advantage,  further,  of  bringing  a  considerable  sup- 
ply of  humus  or  vegetable  matter  to  the  soil,  and 
that  is  usually  an  important  item.  As  a  rule  barn- 
yard manure  is  not  an  economical  fertilizer  for  fruit 
trees  except  when  used  in  moderate  quantities  and 
in  connection  with  mineral  fertilizers  bearing  phos- 
phoric acid  and  potash.  It  is  better  for  apples  and 
plums  than  for  other  fruits.  It  is  of  doubtful  value  for 
peaches,  special  cases  aside ;  while  on  pears  it  is 
actually  dangerous  from  the  fact  that  the  extra 
growth  it  induces  is  especially  liable  to  attacks  of 
the  pear  blight. 

Lime,  while  not  considered  primarily  as  a  fer- 
tilizer, is  often  very  valuable  in  orchards.  Many 
otherwise  excellent  fruit  lands  are  "sour,"  that  is, 
the  soil  has  a  surplus  of  acid.  This  extra  acidity  is 
highly  detrimental  to  the  growth  of  fruit  trees,  and 
should  be  corrected.  The  most  important  correc- 
tions are  lime,  cultivation  and  drainage.  Lime  may 
be  used  at  the  rate  of  one  ton  to  the  acre,  sometimes 
more,  or  occasionally  less. 

Wood  ashes  are  frequently  recommended  in  glow- 
ing terms  as  peculiarly  suited  to  the  feeding  of  fruit 
trees.  This  suitability  is  more  fancied  than  real. 
While  they  are  excellent  when  properly  used  and 
reinforced  with  other  fertilizers,  they  are  generally 
omitted  entirely  from  the  orders  of  well-informed 
fruit  men.  The  real  reason  for  this  is  simply  that 
the  same  quantity  of  good  plant  food  may  nearly 
always  be  bought  in  some  other  form  at  a  much 
lower  price.  Wood  ashes  contain  chiefly  potash 


BEGINNERS     GUIDE   TO   FRUIT   GROWING 


and  lime.  The  potash,  however,  which  is  the  most 
valuable  part,  is  exceedingly  uncertain  in  quantity, 
so  that  most  buyers  feel  safer  when  ordering  potash 
in  the  form  of  muriate  or  sulphate.  Where  wood 
ashes  are  cheaply  available  they  may  be  safely  ap- 
plied to  fruit  plantations  at  the  rate  of  one  to  two 
tons  to  the  acre. 

The  cheapest  commercial  source  of  nitrogen  at 
present  is  nitrate  of  soda.  This  is  especially  useful 
for  newly  set  trees,  which  it  stimulates  to  a  vigor- 


FIG.   22 — TRUCK   CROPS    ( SQUASH)    IX  PEACH   ORCHARD 

ous  and  healthy  growth.  In  such  cases  it  should 
be  used  at  the  rate  of  one  ounce  to  the  tree  at  the 
time  when  growth  starts.  If  more  growth  is  wanted 
a  similar  application  should  be  made  about  June 
first.  Other  sources  of  nitrogen  are  nitrate  of 
potash,  dried  blood,  tankage  and  fish  scrap,  all  of 
which  materials  are  suitable  for  use  on  fruit  planta- 
tions. 

It  should  be  remembered  that  the  office  of  nitro- 
gen always  is  to  promote  wood  growth  and  to  some 


MANAGEMENT  51 

extent  to  delay  fruitage.  It  is  needed,  therefore, 
especially  on  young  trees ;  but  as  old  trees  also 
must  be  kept  in  a  state  of  healthy  growth,  nitrogen 
is  always  required.  The  nitrogen  needs  of  the  tree 
may  be  pretty  accurately  gauged  by  the  color  of  the 
foliage.  If  the  leaves  are  large,  glossy  and  dark 
green  the  nitrogen  supply  is  usually  sufficient. 
When  they  look  yellow,  small  and  thin,  it  is  safe 
to  investigate  both  the  nitrogen  and  the  water  sup- 
ply, as  the  explanation  of  such  symptoms  lies  usu- 
ally in  a  deficiency  of  one  of  these. 

Nitrogen  is  by  far  the  most  expensive  element  in 
fertilizers,  and  is,  therefore,  always  to  be  econo- 
mized in  every  way.  One  of  the  best  ways  of 
economizing  nitrogen  in  orchard  management  lies 
in  the  growing  of  nitrogen-gathering  cover  crops. 
(See  page  46.) 

Potash  is  the  fertilizing  element  next  in  impor- 
tance, and  is  thought  to  be  especially  valuable  in 
maturing  the  crop  of  fruit.  A  large  percentage  of 
potash  enters  into  the  composition  of  apple  seeds, 
peach  seeds,  etc. 

The  two  forms  of  potash  most  commonly  bought 
in  the  market  are  the  muriate  and  the  sulphate. 
Muriate  of  potash  is  largely  used  and  is  considered 
to  be  one  of  the  cheapest  sources  of  supply.  It  has 
the  defect  of  being  sour  and  thus  increasing  the 
acidity  of  the  soil.  As  this  condition  is  especially 
objectionable  to  fruit  trees,  many  orchardists  have 
discarded  the  muriate  entirely  in  favor  of  the  sul- 
phate. The  commercial  sulphate  is  of  two  kinds, 
high  grade  and  low  grade,  the  latter  containing  a 
certain  amount  of  magnesia,  which  has  somewhat 
the  same  effect  in  the  soil  as  lime — that  is,  a  sweet- 
ening effect.  Kainit  is  a  cheap  potash  fertilizer, 


52  BEGINNERS     GUIDE   TO   FRUIT   GROWING 

but  on  account  of  the  relatively  small  amount  of 
actual  potash  contained  and  of  a  tendency  to  acid- 
ity it  is  not  now  used  by  the  best  fruit  men  in  this 
country. 

Phosphoric  acid,  in  connection  with  potash,  is  also 
very  important  in  the  growing  of  fruit.  This  ele- 
ment is  usually  bought  either  in  ground  bone  or  in 
so-called  acid  phosphate.  While  the  latter  form  is 
somewhat  cheaper,  the  former  seems  to  be  rather 
better  adapted  to  the  needs  of  fruit  trees.  Another 
fertilizer  carrying  phosphoric  acid  and  now  becom- 
ing favorably  known  for  use  on  fruit  trees  is  basic 
slag  meal  (Thomas  phosphate  powder).  While  this 
fertilizer  has  not  been  low  enough  in  price  in  the 
recent  past  to  encourage  its  use,  it  seems  to  give 
such  decided  good  results,  particularly  on  sour  soils, 
that  it  is  being  used  more  and  more  from  year  to 
year. 

FERTILIZERS  FOR  SPECIAL  FRUITS 

It  is  impossible  to  give  exact  recipes  for  the 
fertilization  of  particular  fruits,  though  many  people 
seem  to  expect  such  statements  from  the  chemists. 
All  that  can  be  done  is  to  offer  general  suggestions, 
and  the  following  fertilizer  formulas  are  to  be  con- 
sidered in  that  light.  These  formulas  are  to  be 
varied  as  experience  may  indicate  or  local  circum- 
stances may  require.  All  figures  are  given  as 
pounds  to  the  acre,  and  it  is  generally  understood 
that  the  fertilizers  are  to  be  put  on  after  the  first 
plowing  in  the  spring  and  cultivated  into  the  soil. 

For  bearing  apple  orchards  Dr.  W.  P.  Brooks 
recommends:* 


*See   Waugh's  American   Apple   Orchard,   p.  97.     Orange 
Jndd  Co. 


MANAGEMENT  53 

Basic  slag  meal,  400-500  pounds 

Low-grade  sulphate  of  potash,          300  pounds 
In  years  when  the  orchard  is  bearing  a  good  crop 
there  should  be  added  to  this  allowance  75  to  100 
pounds  of  nitrate  of  soda. 

Another  formula,  proposed  by  Geo.  D.  Leavens, 
fertilizer  expert,  is  as  follows : 

Basic  slag  meal,  1,500  pounds 

High-grade  sulphate  of  potash,  300-500  pounds 
Nitrate  of  soda,  200-400  pounds 

This  is  a  much  more  liberal  treatment  and  is  de- 
signed for  an  orchard  in  full  bearing.  It  is  espe- 
cially understood  further  that  the  nitrate  of  soda 
must  be  used  with  great  caution. 

An  old  orchard,  just  being  taken  up  from  the  sod 
and  the  sod  turned  under,  needs  to  be  handled  with 
some  care.  The  growth  of  new  wood  may  have 
been  very  slight  in  previous  years  and  yet  the  turn- 
ing under  and  decay  of  the  sod  in  the  soil  will  result 
in  furnishing  nitrogen  sufficient  in  all  probability  to 
force  considerable  new  growth.  Therefore,  the  ap- 
plication of  nitrogenous  fertilizers  should  be  with- 
held in  such  cases.  In  other  cases,  where  the  new 
growth  is  needed  and  is  not  being  made,  from  IOO 
to  150  pounds  of  nitrate  of  soda  to  the  acre  will 
generally  furnish  a  sufficient  amount  of  nitrogen. 
It  is  best  to  be  conservative  in  the  application  of 
nitrate  of  soda  to  orchards.  A  first  application  of 
loo  pounds,  followed  by  another  supplementary 
application,  if  needed,  is  probably  the  wiser  course. 
Mr.  Leavens,  who  is  responsible  for  these  figures, 
suggests,  also,  that  the  orchard  should  receive  the 
first  year,  if  it  has  had  little  or  no  fertilization  previ- 
ous to  this  application,  800  to  1000  pounds  of  basic 
slag  meal,  and  300  to  400  pounds  of  high-grade 


54  BEGINNERS     GUIDE   TO    FRUIT   GROWING 

sulphate  of  potash.  The  amount  of  nitrogen  to  be 
applied  will  depend  entirely  upon  the  growth  the 
trees  are  making.  If  the  trees  are  making  a  good 
growth  of  new  wood,  all  that  can  well  be  ripened, 
no  nitrogenous  fertilizer  need  be  applied. 

In  subsequent  years  the  application  of  phosphoric 
acid  and  potash  may  be  reduced  somewhat,  and  600 
to  800  pounds  of  basic  slag  meal  and  150  to  300 
pounds  of  high-grade  sulphate  of  potash  may  be 
used  to  the  acre,  the  amount  of  potash  applied  de- 
pending in  a  large  measure  on  the  character  of  the 
soil.  Soils  rich  in  clay  furnish  naturally  more 
potash  than  sandy  soils  or  those  commonly  known 
as  loamy  soils. 

Young  trees  during  the  first  two  years  after  plant- 
ing may  be  given  the  following  amounts  for  each 
tree: 

Nitrate  of  soda,  I  ounce 

Basic  slag  meal,  IO  ounces 

Low-grade  sulphate,         6  ounces 

As  the  orchard  grows  these  amounts  must  be 
gradually  increased.  And  once  more  it  must  be 
emphasized  that  all  such  recipes  are  only  sugges- 
tions and  are  to  be  constantly  varied  according  to 
local  and  special  conditions.  In  particular,  the  fruit 
grower  should  be  ready  to  give  additional  applica- 
tions of  nitrate  of  soda  (but  not  later  than  June  10) 
to  such  trees  as  are  not  making  sufficient  growth. 

Young  peach  trees  may  receive  the  same  rations 
suggested  above  for  young  apple  trees,  but  usually 
it  will  be  wise  to  give  a  second  ounce  of  nitrate  of 
soda  to  each  tree  a  month  after  the  first  applica- 
tion. In  some  cases  the  young  peach  tree  can  use 
advantageously  one-half  pound  of  nitrate.  This 


MANAGEMENT  55 

amount  will  be  not  at  all  excessive  during  the  sec- 
ond and  subsequent  summers. 

When  the  peach  tree  comes  into  bearing  it  re- 
quires theoretically  a  little  less  phosphoric  acid  and 
a  little  more  potash  than  does  the  apple,  although 
where  vigorous  growth  and  sound  wood  are  desired 
it  is  wise  to  use  phosphoric  acid  liberally.  Mr. 
George  D.  Leavens  recommends  from  500  to  800 


FIG.    23 — AN   EXAMPLE  OF  GOOD  TILLAGE 

pounds  to  the  acre  each  year  of  basic  slag  meal,  and 
200  to  400  pounds  of  high-grade  sulphate  of  potash. 
If  sufficient  growth  of  new  wood  is  not  being  made 
TOO  pounds  of  nitrate  of  soda  to  the  acre  will  gen- 
erally prove  sufficient.  It  is  assumed  that  the  grow- 
ing of  cover  crops  and  plowing  under,  together  with 
tillage  until  midsummer,  will  be  followed  as  a  mat- 
ter of  course. 

In  case  the  peach  trees  for  any  reason  are  badly 
impoverished  from  over-bearing  due  to  neglect  to 


56          BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO  FRUIT  GROWING 

thin,  or  have  suffered  from  extremes  of  weather,  it 
is  very  frequently  helpful  to  make  a  light  applica- 
tion of  nitrate  of  potash,  provided  this  material  is 
in  the  market  at  a  price  at  which  it  can  be  obtained 
for  fertilizing  purposes.  For  such  work  the  so- 
called  crude  saltpeter,  imported  from  Calcutta,  is 
the  best.  It  generally  tests  about  94%  pure  and 
carries  the  equivalent  of  about  14%  ammonia,  and 
44  to  45%  of  actual  potash.  Even  so  light  an  appli- 
cation of  this  material  as  one  pound  to  every  five  or 
six  trees  frequently  results  in  enormous  benefit. 

If  we  put  this  in  the  form  of  a  general  recipe,  sub- 
ject to  the  important  qualifications  already  men- 
tioned, we  may  say  that  the  annual  application  re- 
quired by  an  acre  of  bearing  peach  orchard 
would  be : 

Nitrate  of  soda,  50-100  pounds 

Basic  slag  meal,  500-800  pounds 

High-grade  sulphate  of  potash,  200-400  pounds 

In  dealing  with  pears  it  is  always  to  be  remem- 
bered that  special  care  is  required  in  the  use  of 
nitrogen.  This  element  must  be  given  in  relatively 
small  quantities  to  avoid  the  production  of  a  soft 
rapid  growth  of  wood.  As  a  somewhat  rough  esti- 
mate of  average  needs,  we  may  propose  the  follow- 
ing formula  for  pears : 

Basic  slag  meal,  500-800  pounds 

High-grade  sulphate  of  potash,  300-500  pounds 

To  this  there  may  be  added  small  quantities  of 
nitrogenous  fertilizers,  such  as  dried  blood,  when- 
ever the  foliage  shows  yellow  and  the  trees  are 
clearly  not  making  sufficient  growth. 

In  dealing  with  plums  we  have  several  very  differ- 
ent species  of  fruits,  which  should  be  separated  into 


MANAGEMENT  57 

at  least  two  particular  groups  for  purposes  of  prac- 
tical management.  The  Japanese  plums  should  be 
managed  like  peaches,  while  the  European  (domes- 
tlca)  varieties  need  a  form  of  treatment  more  like 
pears.  They  will  stand  rather  more  nitrogen  than 
pears,  but  the  potash  and  phosphoric  acid  require- 
ments are  very  much  the  same.  This  may  be  ex- 
pressed roughly  in  the  following  formula : 

Nitrate  of  soda,  50-100  pounds 

Basic  slag  meal,  400-800  pounds 

High-grade  sulphate  of  potash,  300-500  pounds 

No  one  knows  enough  of  the  peculiar  needs  of 
quinces  to  justify  a  special  formula.  Quinces  may 
be  treated  generally  after  the  manner  of  dwarf 
apples. 

Apricots  and  nectarines  should  be  treated  the 
same  as  peaches. 


IV 

PRUNING 

FRUIT  trees  will  grow  and  bear  without  pruning. 
Among  fruit  growers  there  is  a  considerable  party 
working  on  a  policy  of  no  pruning.  Nevertheless, 
the  large  majority  of  practical  and  scientific  men 
recognize  the  necessity  of  pruning  of  some  sort  and 
for  all  kinds  of  fruit  trees.  The  argument  sometimes 
advanced  that  pruning  is  unnatural  and,  therefore, 
necessarily  wrong,  is  particularly  worthless.  All 
methods  of  agriculture  and  horticulture  are  unnat- 
ural. All  our  work  with  plants  is  based  on  interfer- 
ence with  nature's  methods.  Only  the  savage  who 
gathers  his  fruits  from  wild  trees  and  vines  follows 
the  scheme  of  nature  unrestrained. 

The  methods  used  in  pruning  are  very  diverse  and 
are  too  little  understood.  Here  we  find  probably 
the  weakest  point  in  American  fruit  growing. 
While  almost  any  kind  of  pruning  will  keep  the 
trees  alive  and  secure  an  occasional  crop,  there  are 
very  few  men  who  have  a  true  system  of  pruning 
which  reaches  definite  results  in  the  most  direct 
and  certain  fashion. 

PURPOSES  OF  PRUNING 

Pruning  is  practiced  upon  fruit  trees  for  a  great 
many  different  purposes,  the  most  important  of 
which  are  as  follows : 

To  shape  the  tree.  Especially  during  the  first 
years  after  planting,  the  tree  requires  constant  care 
in  order  to  train  it  to  the  best  possible  form. 


PRUNING 


59 


To  restrict  the  growth.  But  even  old  trees  have  to 
be  regulated  as  to  form.  The  growth  must  be 
restricted.  Otherwise  they  grow  out  of  reach.  In 


FIG.    24— PLUM  TREE  WELL  FORMED 

old  neglected  orchards  one  will  always  find  trees  so 
tall  that  they  cannot  be  sprayed  to  advantage  nor 
the  fruit  harvested  economically.  In  modern  close- 
planted  orchards,  also,  it  is  important  to  restrict 


60          BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO  FRUIT  GROWING 

the  lateral  spread  of  trees  in  order  that  the  day  of 
cutting  out  crowding  trees  may  be  delayed  as  long 
as  possible. 

To  keep  the  heads  open.  Many  varieties  of  trees 
form  so  much  wood  that  their  heads  are  closed  to 
air  and  sunlight.  Fruit  is  borne  only  on  the  tops 
and  sides.  Varieties  with  this  tendency  must  be 
opened  out  with  the  pruning  knife,  so  as  to  let  in 
sun  and  air. 

To  encourage  new  growth.  While  pruning  is  ap- 
plied to  trees  which  grow  too  much,  it  may  be  used 
also  to  correct  the  opposite  tendency.  Old  trees 
which,  through  general  neglect,  have  ceased  to  make 
reasonable  growth,  may  be  helped  by  severe  cutting 
back. 

To  regulate  fruit  bearing.  Proper  pruning  will 
serve  either  to  encourage  trees  toward  earlier  or 
heavier  bearing,  or,  differently  applied,  will  serve 
to  check  a  tendency  toward  overbearing. 

FUNDAMENTAL  PRINCIPLES 

These  very  diverse  objects  are  not  accomplished, 
of  course,  without  recourse  to  equally  diverse 
methods  of  pruning.  Let  us  look,  therefore,  at  some 
of  the  principles  on  which  these  various  methods  are 
founded. 

First,  we  should  notice  that  the  tendency  toward 
wood  growth  and  the  tendency  toward  fruit  bear- 
ing are  to  some  extent  antagonistic.  During  youth 
the  tree  grows  rapidly,  but  bears  no  fruit ;  but  when 
old  age  comes  on  there  may  be  heavy  crops  of  fruit, 
while  the  tree  makes  very  scant  growth.  Through- 
out the  life  of  the  tree,  moreover,  any  treatment 
which  checks  wood  growth  influences  the  tree 


toward  fruiting,  and  any  treatment  which  promotes 
the  growth  of  wood  is  pretty  sure  to  check  the 
formation  of  fruit  buds. 

Next  we  must  remember  that  pruning  done  dur- 
ing the  dormant  season  is  generally  followed  by  a 
stronger  growth  upon  the  remaining  parts  of  the 


FIG.    25 — GOOD  LOW-HEADED  APPLE 


62          BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO  FRUIT  GROWING 

tree.  On  the  other  hand,  if  pruning  is  done  when 
the  tree  is  in  full  growth,  as  in  June,  the  growth  of 
the  tree  is  correspondingly  checked. 

These  considerations  raise  the  question  of  sum- 
mer pruning.  Can  pruning,  then,  be  done  in  the 
summer  as  well  as  in  winter  and  spring?  As  a 
matter  of  fact,  for  certain  purposes  it  can  be  done 
much  better.  Summer  pruning  is  a  practice  by  no 
means  sufficiently  understood  by  American  fruit 
growers,  and  still  less  sufficiently  practiced.  We 
may  accept  it  as  a  fact  that  at  least  one-half  the 
pruning  of  fruit  trees  now  given  in  winter  and  early 
spring  could  much  better  be  given  in  June.  In 
shaping  young  trees  summer  pruning  and  pinching 
is  much  more  effective  than  winter  pruning;  and  in 
the  management  of  old  trees  summer  pruning  has 
the  great  advantage  that  it  is  not  so  much  followed 
by  a  troublesome  growth  of  suckers.  Summer 
pruning  comes  into  play  in  inducing  trees  of  five  to 
ten  years'  growth  to  come  earlier  into  bearing. 

There  are  other  practical  advantages  in  summer 
pruning,  such  as  the  fact  that  small  wounds  then 
heal  more  readily ;  or  that  the  operator  has  a  better 
chance  to  judge  the  growth  of  the  tree  and  to  locate 
dead  branches ;  or,  finally,  that  the  labor  is  more 
easily  performed  than  during  the  winter  season. 

THE  TIME  TO  PRUNE 

The  question  of  the  best  season  for  pruning  has 
always  had  a  lively  argumentative  interest  among 
fruit  men,  but  the  annual  debates  on  the  matter  have 
been  more  valuable  as  an  intellectual  entertain- 
ment than  as  a  settlement  of  horticultural  practices. 
The  old  saying,  that  "the  time  to  prune  is  when  the 


PRUNING 


saw  is  sharp,"  has  a  good  deal  of  force,  and  means 
that  the  season  of  pruning  is  not  of  vital  importance. 
Aside  from  the  summer  (June)  pruning  discussed 
above,  most  work  of  this  sort  is  done  in  early 
spring,  or,  in  regions  further  south,  at  any  time  dur- 
ing the  winter  when  field  work  is  practicable.  There 
are  some  real  reasons  for  doing  this  spring  pruning 
as  early  as  possible  after  heavy  freezing  weather 
is  over.  First  of  all,  the 
rush  of  spring  work  is 
thereby  avoided ;  second, 
the  wounds  heal  more 
easily;  and  third,  the 
wounds  are  not  so  apt  to 
bleed. 

Another  favorite  matter 
of  argument  is  the  method 
of  cutting  the  stub.  Some 
pruners  claim  that  any 
large  branch  should  be  cut 
just  outside  the  collar  or 
raised  ring  of  bark  which 
surrounds  the  base.  Others 
say  that  it  should  be  cut 

back  as  closely  as  possible  to  the  parent  branch.  This 
question  is  really  of  small  import.  The  stub  should  be 
cut  close,  smooth  and  clean,  but  in  case  only  of 
the  renovation  of  old  and  neglected  orchards,  or  re- 
pairing trees  broken  by  accident,  is  the  cutting  of 
large  limbs  really  excusable.  An  orchard  properly 
pruned  from  the  beginning  will  not  require  such 
drastic  surgery. 

PAINTING   WOUNDS 

When    large    limbs    are    cut    away    the    wounds 


FIG.    26 — PROPERLY      HEAL- 
ING   WOUND 


BEGINNERS     GUIDE   TO   FRUIT   GROWING 


should  be  painted  over  with  some  composition  for 
their  protection.  Many  different  mixtures  have  been 
recommended,  but  in  actual  practice  nothing  is  bet- 
ter than  plain  white  lead  paint.  A  small  amount  of 
paris  green  or  other  coloring  matter  may  be  added 


FIG.   27 — TWO-YEAR-OLD  PEACH,   BUSH   FORM 

to  the  white  lead  merely  to  give  the  wounds  a  more 
agreeable  coloring.  A  considerable  number  of  glar- 
ing white  spots  in  a  tree  do  not  look  well,  but  aside 
from  the  shock  to  the  observer's  esthetic  sensibili- 
ties the  white  color  does  no  harm. 


PRUNING  65 

PRUNING  FOR  PLANTING 

Pruning-  begins  with  the  first  day  of  a  tree's  ex- 
istence in  the  orchard.  The  trees  as  they  come  from 
the  nursery  should  be  pruned  before  they  are 
planted.  This  preparation  for  planting  is  described 
in  its  proper  place  (page  35),  but  one  of  the  steps 
now  taken  has  a  very  important  bearing  on  the 
future  pruning  and  development  of  the  tree.  This 
refers  to  the  height  at  which  the  head  is  to  be 
formed. 

Some  orchard  men  prefer  high-headed  trees,  and 
cases  have  been  known  in  which  this  has  been  inter- 
preted to  mean  apple  trees  with  trunks  9  feet,  bare 
up  to  the  first  branches.  It  may  be  said  with  the 
utmost  certainty  that  practical  orchard  men  every- 
where in  America  nowadays  prefer  trees  with  much 
lower  heads  than  those  in  vogue  a  few  years  ago. 
Peaches  are  almost  headed  down  to  the  ground, 
the  trees  being  formed  as  bushes,  and  without  any 
free  trunks.  Plums  and  cherries  also  are  often 
pruned  in  this  bush  form,  and  even  apples  are  some- 
times managed  in  the  same  manner.  An  apple 
tree  with  a  clear  trunk  four  feet  high  would  now 
be  called  a  high-headed  tree,  and  2.l/2  to  3  feet 
would  be  nearer  the  average  of  modern  good  prac- 
tice. 

This  low  heading  has  many  very  substantial  ad- 
vantages. The  low-headed  trees  are  much  stronger. 
As  they  are  also  less  exposed  to  such  damage,  they 
suffer  much  less  by  breakage  from  winds,  sleet  and 
overbearing.  The  trees  can  probably  be  brought 
earlier  into  bearing;  and  though  this  point  is  by 
no  means  proved,  it  seems  that  this  difference  may 
be  as  much  as  three  to  five  vears  in  favor  of  the 


66          BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO  FRUIT  GROWING 

low-headed  tree.  The  lower  tree,  of  course,  can  be 
pruned  and  sprayed  more  economically  and  more 
efficiently;  and  there  is  a  similar  advantage  in 
harvesting  the  fruit. 

The  one  objection  everywhere  made  against  low- 
headed  trees  is  that  the  low  heads  are  said  to  in- 
terfere with  the  cultivation.  The  best  answer  to 


FIG.    28 — LOW-HEADED    PEACH 

this  objection  is  simply  that  it  is  not  so.  It  is  a 
most  curious  fact  that  the  strongest  exponents  of 
thorough  tillage  in  orchards  are  the  very  men  who 
also  urge  low  heading,  while  the  men  who  practice 
high  heading  are  the  ones  who  make  hay  in  their 
orchards. 

With  these  ideas  in  mind  the  planter  will  head 
back  his  nursery  trees  at  planting  time  to  about  the 
height  where  he  wants  the  tops  to  form.  Modern 


PRUNING  67 

good  practice,  as  nearly  as  it  can  be  stated,  is  shown 
in  the  following  table  : 

HEIGHT   FOR    HEADING   YOUNG   TREES 

Inches 

Kind  of  Fruit 
Standard  apple 
Dwarf  apple  . . 

Pear    

Dwarf  pear   .  .  . 
Peach 
Plum  . 
Quince 


FIG.   29 — HIGH-HEADED    PEACH 


Clean  vigorous  one-year-old  trees  (which  are 
best)  should  be  headed  to  one  clean  straight  stub. 
Two-year-old  apple  or  pear  trees  should  have  the 
side  branches  cut  to  spurs  of  one  to  three  inches. 


68          BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO  FRUIT  GROWING 
SHAPING  THE  TREE 

The  tree  now  starts  upon  the  critical  period  of  its 
first  year's  growth.  If  the  man  or  the  woman  hav- 
ing it  in  charge  wishes  to  give  the  very  best  possi- 


FIG.    30— JAPANESE  PLUM  READY  TO  PRUNE 

ble  care  there  will  be  a  good  deal  of  very  light 
but  genuinely  useful  pruning  to  be  done  during 
May,  June  and  July  of  this  initial  year.  Such 


PRUNING 


pruning  can  mostly  be  done  with  thumb  and  finger. 
The  work  consists  chiefly  in  removing  shoots 
which  start  at  undesirable  points.  Attention  at  this 
time  will  enable  the  operator  to  form  a  symmetrical 


i 


FIG.    31— JAPANESE  PLUM  PRUNED 

and  nicely  balanced  head  better  than  at  any  subse- 
quent period. 

"Whether  this  baby  pruning  is  given  or  not,  the 
young  trees  should  be  gone  over  carefully  with 
sharp  hand  shears  early  the  following  spring.  At 


7O  BEGINNERS     GUIDE   TO   FRUIT   GROWING 

this  time  the  young  head  is  shaped,  and  if  the  sum- 
mer pruning  has  been  omitted,  this  spring  shaping 
is  of  exceptional  seriousness.  Useless  branches  are 
cut  away  and  then  four  or  five  strong  branches  are 
chosen  to  be  the  framework  of  the  future  tree. 
These  should  be  as  evenly  balanced  as  possible. 
Instead  of  all  coming  out  at  the  same  height  from 
the  ground,  they  should  start  from  different  levels, 
as  far  as  possible. 

The  extent  to  which  these  main  branches  are 
now  to  be  cut  back  is  a  grave  question.  Practice 
varies  considerably.  But  even  the  radical  men  who 
believe  in  a  policy  of  no  pruning  for  bearing  trees 
generally  believe  that  it  is  best  to  shorten  this  first 
year's  growth  severely  at  the  first  spring  pruning. 
As  nearly  as  this  can  be  stated  in  a  general  rule 
we  may  say  that  it  is  best  to  cut  off  one-half  to 
two-thirds  the  previous  year's  growth,  leaving  stubs 
6  to  14  inches  long. 

From  these  a  large  number  of  secondary  shoots 
will  promptly  appear,  of  which  we  shall  eventually 
wish  to  preserve  two  or  three  to  each  stub.  If  we 
can  afford  to  give  the  time  and  attention  once  more 
during  June  and  July,  the  summer  will  be  the  best 
season  for  managing  this  part  of  the  tree's  develop- 
ment. Otherwise  the  tree  will  need  another 
smoothing  up  with  the  hand  shears  early  the  second 
spring. 

GENERAL   METHODS 

Here  a  division  of  practice  begins  to  appear  very 
clearly  on  the  pomological  horizon.  One  party  be- 
lieves in  letting  the  trees  pretty  much  alone,  except 
for  such  thinning  out,  removal  of  interfering 
branches,  and  other  minor  corrections  as  are  ob- 


viously  required.  The  heading-  back  of  the  year- 
old  shoots  which  are  to  remain  is  especially  omitted. 
Hereafter  the  tree  is  allowed  to  grow  without 
heading  back.  The  other  party  believes  in  an- 
nual heading-  back  with  a  view  to  forming  more 
compact  heads  and  with  the  idea  that  the  formation 
of  the  heads  can  be  more  strictly  controlled.  It  is 
only  fair  to  say  that  in  the 
present  state  of  our  porno- 
logical  knowledge  a  positive 
decision  cannot  be  given  in 
favor  of  either  method. 
Some  men  succeed  by  one 
method,  others  by  the  other. 

During  the  succeeding 
early  years  of  growth  in  the 
orchard  this  procedure  con- 
tinues. The  heads  will  be 
kept  open  and  clean  under 
any  method  of  management, 
while  the  men  who  believe 
in  heading  back  their  trees 
will  continue  their  annual 
heading  in,  and  the  men  who 
believe  in  allowing  free  and 
unrestricted  growth  will 
omit  that  portion  of  the  annual  pruning  exercise. 

When  the  trees  come  into  bearing  the  treatment 
necessarily  changes  to  some  extent.  The  problems 
of  forming  the  head  of  the  tree  have  now  been 
largely  passed  by  and  the  leading  problem  now  is 
the  reproduction  of  an  abundance  of  healthy  fruit- 
ing wood.  The  men  who  have  practiced  the  head- 
ing-in  system  should  now,  to  be  consistent,  remove 
a  certain  portion  of  the  top  of  each  tree  every  year, 


FIG.   32 — QUINCE    READY 
TO  PRUNE 


BEGINNERS     GUIDE    TO    FRUIT    GROWING 


cutting  out  wood  wherever  it  can  best  be  spared,  so 
as  to  permit  the  growth  of  an  equal  quantity  of 
virgin  wood.  The  men  whose  trees  have  been  left 
largely  to  their  own  devices  during  their  formative 
years  will  naturally  continue  to  let  the  trees  have 
their  own  way.  And,  so  far  as  anyone  can  prophesy, 
both  men  will  reap  reasonable  harvests  of  fruit. 
Both  sets  of  men  will  practice  enough  pruning  to 

. -,    cut   out  dead   and   diseased 

and  broken  branches  or 
those  which  are  rubbing  or 
interfering  with  one  another. 
This  kind  of  pruning  is 
chiefly  an  exercise  of  good 
practical  horse  sense.  In  so 
far  as  it  is  a  scientific  prob- 
lem, involving  the  applica- 
tion of  principles  of  plant 
physiology,  nobody  knows 
enough  about  it  to  give  any- 
one else  any  directions.  It  is 
greatly  to  be  hoped  that  the 
time  may  soon  come  when 
we  shall  have  a  logical  and 
scientifically  founded  system 
of  pruning  adapted  to 
American  requirements ;  but 

we  may  as  well  confess  that  for  the  present  our  knowl- 
edge of  these  matters  is  lamentably  crude  and  inade- 
quate. 

PRUNING   TOOLS 

The  principal  tools  used  in  pruning  are  the  fol- 
lowing: 

The  hand.     Many  young  shoots  can  be  pinched 


FIG.   33 — QUINCE   PRUNED 


PRUNING  73 

out  by  thumb  and  fingers ;  or  when  heavier  growths 
are  to  be  removed,  as  in  summer  pruning  of  peach 
trees  or  Japanese  plums,  the  operator  can,  by  pro- 


FIG.    34 HAND    SHEARS 


tecting  himself  with  a  pair  of  stout  canvas  gloves, 
break  out  the  soft  shoots  very  rapidly  and  yet 
do  an  excellent  sort  of  work.  It  hardly  needs  to 


FIG.    .>.> — TWO-HAND    SHEARS 


be  remarked  that  this  kind  of  pruning  is  the  fastest 
and  by  far  the  cheapest  sort  that  can  be  done. 
The  shears.    The  hand  pruning  shears  are,  all  things 


FIG.    36— POCKET   PRUNING   KNIFE 

considered,  the  most  useful  of  all  pruning  tools. 
(See  Figure  34.)  Shears  of  medium  weight  are 
best  for  general  purposes,  though  if  the  fruit  grower 


74  BEGINNERS     GUIDE   TO    FRUIT    GROWING 

feels  like  supplying  himself  with  a  full  equipment, 
a  set  of  shears — one  pair  light,  one  medium,  and  one 
heavy — will  enable  him  to  adapt  his  tool  to  the  char- 
acter of  his  work.  This  is  a  manifest  advantage. 
The  cheapest  grades  of  shears  should  be  avoided. 
The  two-hand  shears  (Figure  35)  will  be  found 
suitable  for  rather  heavy  pruning.  While  they  are 
not  quite  indispensable,  they  are  well  worth  having. 


FIG.    37 — RIGID   PRUNING   KNIFE 

The  long-handled,  or  pole  pruner  is  also  a  very 
valuable  tool.  This  instrument  may  be  had  with 
poles  of  various  lengths,  from  6  to  12  feet. 

The  knife.  Every  nurseryman  and  orchardist  is 
expected  to  carry  a  pruning  knife  with  the  typical 
curved  blade  (Figure  36),  just  to  show  his  mem- 
bership in  the  order.  Sometimes  the  knife  comes 
in  handy  on  trees,  though  it  is  much  more  fre- 


FIG.    38 — PRUNING   SAW 

quently    used    for    opening    sardine    cans,    paring 
horses'  hoofs  or  cutting  a  chew  of  tobacco. 

The  pruning  saw  is  a  regular  article  of  com- 
merce, though  the  saws  most  widely  sold  for  this  pur- 
pose are  too  light  and  are  made  of  very  poor  materials. 
Some  pruners  prefer  one  pattern  and  some  another. 


PRUNING  75 

The  hatchet  and  the  ax  should  never  be  used  for 
pruning  fruit  trees  under  any  circumstances.  The 
man  who  is  guilty  of  this  solecism  should  always 
be  dropped  from  the  horticultural  club  and  good 
society  generally. 

Ladders  are  required  in  pruning  large  trees.  The 
tree  ladders,  or  fruit-picking  ladders,  are  best.  The 
peculiarity  of  these  ladders  is  that  they  have  only 
one  point  at  the  top  instead  of  the  usual  two 
points.  Such  ladders  can  be  bought  almost  any- 
where of  dealers  in  agricultural  machinery  or  horti- 
cultural supplies,  or  any  handy  farm  mechanic  can 
make  one  for  himself. 


SPRAYING 

BY  many  persons,  spraying  is  evidently  regarded 
as  the  panacea  for  all  the  fruit  grower's  troubles. 
It  is  expected  to  rid  the  tree  of  every  insect,  to  kill 
every  fungus,  to  extirpate  bacteria,  to  heal  the 
wounds  left  by  the  whiffletrees,  to  repair  the  neglect 
of  drainage,  to  offset  unfavorable  weather  and  to 
abate  the  taxes.  At  the  very  outset  of  this  chapter 
we  must  understand,  therefore,  that  the  beneficial 
results  of  spraying  are  strictly  limited  to  a  few 
items,  and  that  there  are  many  troubles  which  can- 
not be  reached  by  this  means.  Furthermore,  spray- 
ing can  be  of  no  possible  use  in  any  case  unless  it  be 
intelligently  done.  The  work  must  be  given  at 
exactly  the  right  time,  certain  remedies  must  be 
applied  for  specific  diseases,  and  many  more  small 
details  must  be  looked  after  in -just  the  correct 
fashion,  or  the  whole  work  will  come  to  naught. 

In  broad  terms,  we  spray  for  the  suppression  of 
fungous  and  insect  attacks.  The  spraying  for  fungi 
is  almost  wholly  preventive — rarely  or  never  cura- 
tive. In  practical  application  this  means  that  when 
a  tree  appears  to  be  suffering  from  the  attacks  of 
any  fungus  it  is  already  too  late  to  do  any  effective 
spraying.  It  is  also  to  be  noticed  that  a  number  of 
serious  plant  diseases  are  caused  by  bacteria  instead 
of  by  fungi,  and  that  such  diseases  can  very  seldom 
be  checked  in  the  slightest  by  any  kind  of  spraying. 
The  deadly  pear  blight  is  of  this  number.  Diseases 
which  can  be  more  or  less  completely  prevented  by 


SPRAYING  77 

spraying  are  apple  scab,  apple  tree  canker,  peach 
leaf  curl  and  black  knot  of  plum. 

BORDEAUX   MIXTURE 

The  standard  solution  for  the  prevention  of 
fungous  attacks  is  the  bordeaux  mixture  composed 
of  lime  and  copper  sulphate.  This  is  the  great  and 


FIG.    39 — SPRING  CAMPAIGN   AGAINST   SAN  JOSE   SCALE 

original  spraying  solution,  and  the  one  still  most 
widely  used.  It  is  effective  in  the  prevention  of 
most  preventable  fungous  diseases,  particularly  the 
apple  scab.  The  standard  formula  is  as  follows : 

Copper  sulphate  (blue  vitriol)  4  pounds 
Good  stone  lime,  unslaked,  4  pounds 
Water,  50  gallons 

The  copper  sulphate  should  be   separately  dis- 
solved.   The  best  way  to  do  this  is  to  place  it  in  a 


78          BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO  FRUIT  GROWING 

gunny  sack  and  hang  it  at  the  top  of  a  vessel  of 
water.  For  the  quantities  mentioned  in  the  recipe 
above,  the  4  pounds  of  copper  sulphate  should  be 
dissolved  in  not  more  than  20  gallons  of  water. 
The  lime  should  be  slaked  carefully,  using  only  just 
enough  water  to  bring  it  into  solution.  After  it  has 
been  thoroughly  slaked,  it  may  be  thinned  out. 
When  both  solutions  are  thus  made  up,  they  should 
be  diluted  to  25  gallons  each  and  poured  together, 
being  thoroughly  mixed  while  the  pouring  is  going 
on.  The  mixture,  after  being  strained  into  the  spray 
tank,  is  ready  for  use. 

A  common  and  excellent  way  of  preparing  this 
mixture  for  orchard  use  is  to  make  up  two  stock 
solutions.  The  copper  sulphate  solution  is  made 
up  by  dissolving  the  sulphate  at  the  rate  of  one 
pound  to  the  gallon  of  water,  and  the  lime  solution 
similarly,  with  one  pound  of  lime  to  the  gallon  of 
water.  If,  then,  it  is  required  to  fill  a  hundred  gal- 
lon tank  with  bordeaux  mixture,  it  is  only  necessary 
to  dip  out  8  gallons  of  lime  solution,  8  gallons  of 
copper  sulphate  solution,  and  then  mix  these  in  the 
tank  with  enough  water  to  make  a  tankful  of 
mixture. 

The  formula  given  above  is  standard  strength, 
but  the  mixture  is  often  used  weaker,  especially  on 
peach  and  plum  trees.  Instead  of  using  4  pounds  of 
copper  sulphate  and  4  pounds  of  lime  to  50  gallons 
of  water,  the  diluted  mixture  may  contain  100  or 
even  150  or  200  gallons  of  water,  making  the  solu- 
tion one-half  or  one-fourth  strength. 

It  is  important  in  making  this  solution  to  have 
good,  clean,  unslaked  lime.  A  slight  excess  of  lime 
in  the  solution  is  desirable. 

The  lime-sulphur  spray  described  (page  80)  as  a 


SPRAYING 


79 


remedy  for  San  Jose  scale  also  has  considerable 
fungicidal  value.  It  is  especially  useful  in  early 
spring  sprayings  on  peach  trees,  at  which  season  it 
has  measurable  efficacy  in  preventing  leaf  curl. 


FIG.   40 — GRAVITY   MIXING  OF  BORDEAUX    MIXTURE 
FIGHTING  INSECTS 

There  are  two  very  different  types  of  insects 
which  require  altogether  different  methods  of  treat- 
ment for  their  suppression.  One  class  takes  its  food 
by  eating  the  leaves  of  the  trees,  the  other  by 
puncturing  the  bark  and  sucking  the  sap.  The 
former  insects  may  be  killed  by  poisoning  the  foli- 


8o          BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO  FRUIT  GROWING 

age  with  paris  green,  arsenate  of  lead  or  other 
poisons.  The  sucking  insects,  however,  cannot  be 
poisoned  by  any  means,  and  it  is,  therefore,  neces- 
sary to  spray  them  with  some  caustic  or  irritating 
substance  which  kills  when  it  touches  them. 

PARIS  GREEN 

Among  the  poisonous  sprays  paris  green  is  the 
best  known..  It  is  applied  after  mixing  I  pound  of 
paris  green  in  100  to  200  gallons  of  water.  A  pound 
of  lime  ought  to  be  added  to  this  mixture,  however, 
to  neutralize  free  arsenic,  which  would  otherwise 
burn  the  foliage.  The  paris  green  can  be  added 
directly  to  the  bordeaux  mixture.  This  is  a  favor- 
ite way  of  using  it. 

ARSENATE  OF  LEAD 

Probably  the  most  popular  and  satisfactory  poi- 
son used  against  chewing  insects  at  present  is 
arsenate  of  lead.  This  comes  in  various  forms  from 
the  dealers — usually,  however,  as  a'  paste.  It  is 
mixed  at  the  rate  of  3  pounds  to  a  barrel  of  water. 
This  has  the  same  uses  exactly  as  paris  green,  but 
is  safer,  as  it  does  not  injure  the  foliage.  Further- 
more, it  has  the  good  quality  of  holding  on  to  the 
foliage.  Arsenate  of  lead  may  be  mixed  with  bor- 
deaux mixture,  and  in  fact  this  is  the  customary 
way  of  applying  it. 

LIME-SULPHUR  WASH 

This  spray  solution  is  used  chiefly  for  killing  the 
San  Jose  scale,  and  has  been  found  on  the  whole  the 


SPRAYING 


81 


most  efficient  spray  for  that  purpose.    The  recipe  is 
as  follows : 

Fresh  stone  lime,  16  pounds 

Flowers  of  sulphur,  or  sulphur  flour,   15  pounds 
Water,  40  gallons 

Flowers  of  sulphur 
usually  cost  a  little 
more  than  the  sulphur 
flour,  but  should  be 
preferred  when  the  so- 
lution is  to  be  cooked 
over  a  fire  in  a  kettle. 
When  the  solution  can 
be  cooked  with  live 
steam,  which  is  the  bet- 
ter way,  the  cheaper 
grades  of  sulphur  are 
equally  available. 

Begin  by  slaking  the 
lime  in  a  small  amount 
of  water  in  a  large  iron 
kettle.  Whe-n  the  slak- 
ing lime  generates  a 
considerable  amount  of 
heat,  sprinkle  the  sul- 
phur in  gradually,  thus  utilizing  the  heat  of 
the  lime  in  cooking  the  sulphur.  At  this  stage,  a 
fire  should  be  made  under  the  kettle  and  the  solu- 
tion kept  up  to  the  boiling  point,  adding  the  water  a 
little  at  a  time.  Vigorous  boiling  should  be  main- 
tained for  about  an  hour,  at  the  end  of  which  time 
the  solution  becomes  a  dark  orange  in  color  and 
should  have  very  little  sediment  at  the  bottom. 
Whether  it  shows  sediment  or  not,  the  solution 


FIG.   41 
BOILING   LIME-SULPHUR 


82 


BEGINNERS     GUIDE   TO    FRUIT    GROWING 


should  be  strained  through  a  fine  strainer  into  the 
spray  tank  and  used  while  still  hot. 

The  lime-sulphur  is  used  also  as  a  spring  spray, 
especially  on  peach  trees,  for  checking  leaf  curl.  For 
this  purpose  it  must  be  greatly  diluted.  It  has  such 
decided  fungicidal  value  that  it  is  now  coming  into 
use  to  some  extent  in  treating  apple  trees  for  the 
prevention  of  scab.  For  summer  use,  on  trees  in 


FIG.    42 — THE  REGULAR  JOB  OF   SPRAYIXG 

full  foliage,  the  solution  need  not  be  applied  hot, 
although  it  should  always  be  used  when  freshly 
made.  Even  standing  overnight  is  likely  to  result 
in  considerable  deterioration. 

There  are  several  forms  of  ready-made  lime-sul- 
phur offered  on  the  market ;  some  of  these  are  fairly 
good,  but  none  of  them  has  yet  been  found  equal  to 
the  freshly  made  solution  described  above. 


SPRAYING  83 

SELF-BOILED  LIME-SULPHUR 

Another  method  of  making  the  lime-sulphur  spray 
produces  what  is  called  the  self-boiled  mixture, 
which  seems  to  have  properties  considerably  differ- 
ent from  the  mixture  described  above.  This  self- 
boiled  mixture  seems  to  be  especially  valuable  as  a 
fungicide,  particularly  on  the  peach.  It  controls  the 
leaf-curl,  the  brown  rot,  the  scab,  and,  when  arse- 
nate  of  lead  is  added  at  the  spraying,  after  the  blos- 
soming season,  the  curculio  also.  The  most  recent 
methods  of  making  this  mixture,  as  worked  out  by 
Scott  and  Ayres  of  the  United  States  Department  of 
Agriculture,  are  as  follows : 

The  8-8-50  formula  is  recommended.  This  mix- 
ture can  best  be  prepared  in  rather  large  quantities 
— say  enough  for  200  gallons  at  a  time,  making  the 
formula  32  pounds  of  lime  and  32  pounds  of  sulphur, 
to  be  cooked  with  8  or  10  gallons  of  water,  and  then 
diluted  to  200  gallons. 

The  lime  should  be  placed  in  a  barrel  and  enough 
water  poured  on  almost  to  cover  it.  As  soon  as  the 
lime  begins  to  slake  the  sulphur  should  be  added 
after  first  running  it  through  a  sieve  to  break  up  the 
lumps.  The  mixture  should  be  constantly  stirred 
and  more  water  added  as  needed  to  form  a  thick 
paste  at  first,  and  then  gradually  a  thin  paste.  The 
lime  will  supply  enough  heat  to  boil  the  mixture 
several  minutes.  As  soon  as  it  is  well  slaked,  water 
should  be  added  to  cool  the  mixture  and  prevent 
further  cooking.  It  is  then  ready  to  be  strained  into 
the  spray  tank,  diluted  and  applied. 

The  stage  at  which  cold  water  should  be  poured 
on  to  stop  the  cooking  varies  with  different  limes. 
Some  limes  are  so  sluggish  in  slaking  that  it  is  diffi- 


84          BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO  FRUIT  GROWING 

cult  to  obtain  enough  heat  from  them  to  cook  the 
mixture  at  all,  while  other  limes  become  intensely 
hot  on  slaking.  Care  must  be  taken  not  to  allow 
the  boiling  to  proceed  too  far.  If  the  mixture  is 
allowed  to  remain  hot  15  or  20  minutes  after  the 
slaking  is  completed,  the  sulphur  goes  into  solu- 
tion, combining  with  the  lime  to  form  sulphides, 
which  are  injurious  to  peach  foliage.  It  is  very 


FIG.    43 — TREES    SPRAYED  WITH    LIME-SULPHUR 

important,  especially  with  hot  lime,  to  cool  the  mix- 
ture quickly  by  adding  a  few  buckets  of  water  as 
soon  as  the  lumps  of  lime  have  slaked  down.  The 
intense  heat,  violent  boiling,  and  constant  stirring 
result  in  a  uniform  mixture  of  finely  divided  sulphur 
and  lime,  with  only  a  very  small  percentage  of  the 
sulphur  in  solution.  The  mixture  should  be  strained 
to  take  out  the  coarse  particles  of  lime,  but  the  sul- 


SPRAYING  85 

phur    should    be    carefully    worked    through    the 
strainer. 

In  using  arsenate  of  lead  with  this  mixture  it 
should  be  added  at  the  rate  of  2  pounds  to  50 
gallons. 

SOLUBLE  OILS 

There  are  now  on  the  market  several  brands  of 
so-called  soluble  or  miscible  oils,  which  are  exten- 
sively used  in  the  campaign  against  the  San  Jose 
scale.  These  are  simply  various  products  of  the 
-kerosene  industry  made  up  in  such  a  manner  that 
they  mix  readily  with  water.  The  usual  way  of 
applying  these  oils  is  to  add  one  gallon  of  oil  to  15 
or  16  gallons  of  water,  stirring  the  solution  vigor- 
ously, usually  by  pumping  it  back  into  the  barrel.  The 
solution  is  then  ready  for  immediate  use.  It  is  this 
ease  of  mixing  and  applying  which  forms  one  of  the 
strong  recommendations  for  this  kind  of  spray.  It 
gives  excellent  success  in  many  instances. 

KEROSEXE   EMULSION 

For  combating  aphis  and  certain  other  sucking 
insects  kerosene  emulsion  is  always  recommended, 
sometimes  used  and  in  rare  instances  proves  effec- 
tive. It  is  made  up  as  follows : 

Hard  soap,  shaved  fine,       l/2  pound 
Water,  i  gallon 

Kerosene,  2  gallons 

Dissolve  the  soap  in  the  water,  which  should  be 
boiling;  remove  from  the  fire  and  pour  it  into  the 
kerosene  while  hot.  Churn  this  with  a  spray  pump 
till  it  changes  to  a  creamy,  then  to  a  soft  butter-like 


86          BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO  FRUIT  GROWING 

mass.    Keep  this  as  a  stock,  and  use  one  part  in  nine 
of  water  for  soft-bodied  insects  such  as  plant  lice. 

DUST   SPRAYING 

Fungicides  and  insecticides  are  sometimes  applied 
as  a  dry  powder  instead  of  as  a  liquid  spray.  In 
this  case  a  special  blower  is  used  in  place  of  the 
regulation  pump.  The  dust  method  of  spraying, 
however,  is  generally  regarded  as  the  lazy  man's 
makeshift,  and  is  not  to  be  adopted  where  the  ordi- 
nary methods  are  available.  The  dust  spray  has  been 
found  most  useful  where  water  for  making  solu- 
tions is  very  scarce,  or  on  certain  very  rough  and 
rocky  lands  where  the  barrel  pump  could  not  be  car- 
ried. Thus,  it  has  happened  to  be  more  at  home 
in  the  Missouri  Ozarks  than  elsewhere.  The  fol- 
lowing directions  are  adopted  bodily  from  Missouri : 

TO  MAKE  70  POUNDS  OF  STOCK  POWDER 

4  pounds  copper  sulphate 

4  pounds  quicklime 

2//2  gallons  water  in  which  to  dissolve 

copper  sulphate 
2/X>   gallons  water  in   which  to  slake 

quicklime 
60  pounds  air  slaked  lime  thoroughly 

sifted 

Dissolve  the  copper  sulphate  and  slake  quicklime 
separately,  each  in  2^/2  gallons  water.  Pour  at  same 
time  milk  of  lime  and  copper  solution  into  a  third 
vessel  and  stir  thoroughly.  Surplus  water  is  then 
strained  out  and  remaining  wet  material  is  thor- 
oughly mixed  with  the  60  pounds  of  air-slaked  lime. 


SPRAYING 


All  lumps  must  be  sifted  out  and  the  mixture  must 
be  perfectly  dry.  One  pound  each  of  sulphur  and 
paris  green  may  be  added. 


SPRAY    MACHINERY 


A  spraying  outfit  consists  essentially  of  four 
parts:  (i)  a  tank  or  a  barrel  with  some  means  of 
carrying  it,  (2)  a  pump,  (3)  a  suitable  length  of 


FIG.    44— CONVENIENT  CART  OUTFIT 

hose,  and  (4)  a  nozzle  or  nozzles.  These  various 
elements  are  all  of  them  important.  They  should 
be  fully  understood  by  the  operator,  should  be  care- 
fully selected  in  buying,  and  should  be  kept  up  to 
their  original  efficiency  by  good  care  and  frequent 
inspection. 

The  tank  or  the  barrel  is  perhaps  the  easiest  part 
to  provide  to  one's  satisfaction.  Any  sound  kero- 
sene or  whiskey  barrel  may  be  used,  or  a  good  bar- 


BEGINNERS     GUIDE   TO    FRUIT    GROWING 


rel  bought  of  the  dealers  in  spray  machinery.  For 
large  operations  a  2OO-gallon  tank  will  be  needed. 
This  can  best  be  bought  direct  from  the  dealers. 

The  pump  is  the  vital 
part  of  the  spray  outfit. 
It  must  be  strong  and 
easy  working,  and  all  the 
working  parts  must  be  of 
brass.  An  ordinary  iron 
pump  is  quickly  ruined 
by  the  corrosive  liquids 
used  in  spraying.  The 
submerged  hand  pumps 
are  best  for  ordinary 
work,  the  double-acting 
pump  (see  Figure  46) 
for  heavier  hand  spray- 
ing, while  the  heavy 
double-acting  pumps  go 


FIG.   45  —  SUBMERGED     BARREL 
PUMP 

with  the  kerosene  power 
sprayers. 

The  hose  should  be  spe- 
cially selected  for  spraying 
and  should  be  the  best  rub- 
ber hose,  j4  mcri  m  diam- 
eter. Some  operators, 
however,  prefer  cheap 
cotton  hose  ^  inch  in 
diameter. 

The  nozzle  is  of  great 
importance.  While  there 


FIG.  40—  LARGE    HAND   PUMP 


SPRAYING 


89 


are  a  great  many  different  makes  on  the  market, 
most  of  them  conform  to  two  general  types,  the 
bordeaux  and  the  vermorel  (see  Figures  47-49). 
It  may  be  pointed  out  that  of  these  two  types  of 
nozzle  the  vermorel  gives  the  finer  spray,  while  the 
bordeaux  throws  to  the  greater  height.  The  ver- 
morel nozzle  should  be  used  by  preference  wher- 
ever the  work  can  be  readily  reached,  as  the  fine 
misty  spray  is  much  more 
effective  in  coating  the 
leaves,  while  it  is  at  the 
same  time  more  economical 
of  the  solution.  When  the 
tops  of  large  trees  have 
to  be  reached,  however, 
it  is  necessary  to  use  a 
nozzle  with  more  squirt 
to  it.  A  good  practical 
arrangement  consists  in 
having  two  leads  of  hose 
on  the  spray  pump,  one 
fitted  with  vermorel  nozzles, 
the  other  with  the  bor- 
deaux. Then  the  man  who 
handles  the  bordeaux  nozzles  will  do  the  work  in 
the  tree  tops  while  his  co-workman  with  the  ver- 
morel nozzles  gives  his  attention  to  the  lower 
branches. 

Spraying  outfits  as  a  whole  may  be  conveniently 
classified  into  three  types,  the  knapsack  sprayer, 
the  barrel  sprayer  and  the  power  sprayer.  Of  these 
the  knapsack  sprayer  is  not  much  used  nowadays. 
Even  for  small  gardens  it  is  unsatisfactory,  the 
small  barrel  pumps  being  as  cheap  and  much  more 
efficient. 


FIG.    47 — NOZZLE   OF 
DEAUX    TYPE 


90  BEGINNERS     GUIDE   TO   FRUIT   GROWING 

The  barrel  outfit  (see  Figure  45)  is  the  equip- 
ment proper  for  most  gardens  and  small  orchards. 
The  barrel  may  be  bought  ready  mounted  on  a  spe- 
cial truck  or  carriage ;  but  as  a  rule  the  barrel  can 
best  be  purchased  separately  and  carried  about  the 
place  in  any  common  wagon. 

The  large  power  outfits  are  very  valuable  for  heavy 
work  in  large  orchards.  They 
are  by  no  means  suited  to  the 
accomplishments  of  the  begin- 
ner, and  so  the  reader  of  this 
book  may  properly  be  referred 
to  more  professional  sources 
for  suggestions  on  this  topic. 

THE  SPRAYING  CAMPAIGN 

In  order  to  get  the  best  re- 
sults from  spraying  it  is  neces- 
sary to  have  a  definite  program 
of  operations.  A  single  isolated 
FIG.  48  spraying  given   for  some   spe- 

VERMOREL^TYPE    OF          cjfic    pUrpose    may    pay    jts    way> 

but  it  cuts  a  small  and  sorry 

figure -in  the  general  practice  of  modern  fruit  grow- 
ing. The  general  program  of  work  will  usually  be 
outlined  somewhat  as  follows  : 

i.  Midzvinter  to  March  15. — A  thorough  application 
of  lime  sulphur  or  soluble  oil  for  San  Jose  scale.  Of 
course,  in  any  orchard  where  San  Jose  scale  does 
not  exist,  this  treatment  may  be  omitted.  In 
orchards  where  it  does  exist  annual  treatment  is 
usually  necessary,  the  complete  annihilation  of  these 
insects  being  of  so  rare  occurrence  as  hardly  to  need 
mention.  It  is  the  practice  of  many  good  fruit 


SPRAYING 


growers  to  use  lime-sulphur  spray  one  year  and 
soluble  oil  the  next.  In  other  cases  where  the  lime- 
sulphur  is  depended  upon  for  its  fungicidal  proper- 
ties, growers  prefer  to  use  it  every  year  rather  than 
to  alternate  with  soluble  oil. 

2.  An  early  spring  treatment  with  fungicide. — On 
apple,  pear  and  plum  trees,  this  usually  means  a 
thorough  drenching  with  plain  solution  of  copper 
sulphate,  5  pounds  to  50  gallons  of  water  applied 
before   the   buds   start. 

The  lime  sulphur  spray 
has  been  found  decid- 
edly better  for  peach 
trees,  and  in  fact  this 
spray  is  coming  into 
use  on  other  fruit  also. 
The  purpose  of  this 
early  spring  spraying 
is  to  kill  the  fungus 
spores  adhering  to  the 
trees.  In  many  or- 
chards this  is  the  most 
valuable  spraying  of 
the  year. 

3.  In  orchards  where 

a  special  fight  is  to  be  made  against  fungi,  particu- 
larly apple  and  pear  scab,  another  spraying  is  given 
immediately  before  the  blossoms  open.  In  nearly 
all  cases  this  treatment  will  be  made  with  plain  bor- 
deaux mixture. 

4.  As  soon  as  the  blossoms  have  fallen  from  the 
trees,  operations  should  be  begun  for  what  is  actually, 
in    ordinary    practice,    the    big    treatment    of    the 
year's  campaign.    At  this  time  the  trees  should  be 
treated  with  bordeaux  mixture  combined  with  some 


FIG.   49 — NOZZLE    OF    IMPROVED 
VERMOREL  TYPE 


92  BEGINNERS     GUIDE   TO   FRUIT   GROWING 

insect  poison,  preferably  arsenate  of  lead.  Bor- 
deaux mixture  protects  the  newly  formed  leaves 
from  the  attacks  and  fungi,  while  the  poison  pro- 
tects the  newly  formed  apples,  pears  or  quinces 
from  the  attacks  of  the  codling  moth  and  the  foliage 
from  the  incursions  of  leaf-eating  insects.  Under 
no  circumstances  should  the  spraying  be  done  while 
the  fruit  trees  are  in  blossom.  It  may  injure  the 
fruit  blossoms,  and  it  is  almost  sure  to  poison  the 
bees,  which  are  one  of  the  fruit  grower's  best 
friends. 

5.  About  two  weeks  later  another  spraying  is  due, 
this   time  with  bordeaux  mixture   and  poison,  or 
with  weak  lime-sulphur  and  poison. 

6.  Additional  sprayings  are  usually  recommended 
up  to  the  middle  of  July  or  the  first  of  August,  to 
be  given  at  intervals  of  10  days  to  two  weeks.  There 
are  very  few  fruit  growers,  however,  who  carry  out 
this  complete  program,  omissions  commonly  being 
made  from  the  foot  of  this  list.    Careful  experiments 
and  wide  experience    have   both    shown,    however, 
that  four,  five  and  six  sprayings  may  be  usually 
given  at  a  profit.     Each  successive  spraying  will 
show  a  sufficient  gain  over  the  previous  ones  to  pay 
its  cost  and  leave  something  for  the  fruit  grower. 

Such  an  outline  as  that  here  given  can  be  only 
suggestive,  of  course.  Improvements  in  spray  solu- 
tions and  spraying  methods  are  being  made  rapidly 
year  by  year,  and  local  conditions  of  climate  often 
require  important  adjustments.  Those  who  are 
inexperienced  in  spraying  operations  and  who  can- 
not easily  come  by  the  personal  help  of  some  one 
who  knows,  had  better  get  the  latest  spray  bulletin 
from  their  state  experiment  station  before  begin- 
ning. Such  bulletins  are  issued  in  most  states,  and 


SPRAYING 


93 


have  the  merit  of  conveying  the  latest  information 
and  of  suggesting  the  necessary  local  adjustments 
of  practice. 

In  this  connection,  speaking  both  of  bulletins  and 
of  the  spraying  campaign,  we  may  reproduce  by 
way  of  illustration  the  excellent  program  arranged 
by  Prof.  S.  A.  Beach  for  use  in  Iowa. 


SPRAYING   CAMPAIGN 


WHEN    TO    SPRAY 

WHAT  TO   SPRAY   FOR 

1.  When  the  green  tips  of 
the  first  leaves  get  as 
large  as  mouse  ears. 

Apple  scab,  canker  and  leaf 
spot,  bud  moths,  canker- 
worms,  case  bearers,  tent  cat- 
erpillars, and  other  leaf-eating 
insects.  Where  apple  scab 
and  insects  have  not  been 
abundant  or  where  the  trees 
have  been  sprayed  during  the 
dormant  season,  treatment  at 
this  time  may  be  omitted. 

2.  Just  before  the  blossoms 
open. 

Apple  scab,  canker  and  leaf 
spot.  Curculio,  and  all  insects 
mentioned  in  1.  The  most 
important  single  treatment 
against  flic  scab. 

3.  Just  as  the  last  of  the 
apple  blossoms  are  fall- 
ing. 

Apple  scab  and  other  diseases. 
Codling  moth,  curculio  and 
insects  mentioned  in  1.  Tlie 
most  important  single  spray 
against  the  codling  moth. 

4.  From  10  to  20  clays  later 
than  3. 

Apple  scab,  bitter  rot  and 
other  diseases.  Insects  as 
mentioned  in  3.  Where  bitter 
rot  and  blotch  are  trouble- 
some, bordeaux  is  recom- 
mended rather  than  lime- 
sulphur. 

5.  In  late  July  or  early  Au- 
gust, or  about  10  weeks 
later  than  4. 

Bitter  rot,  scab  and  other  dis- 
eases. .  Codling  moth  and 
other  insects.  Very  important 
in  fighting  second  brood  cod- 
ling moth. 

94  BEGINNERS     GUIDE   TO    FRUIT   GROWING 

SPRAYING  CAMPAIGN — Continued 


WHEN   TO   SPRAY 

WHAT  TO   SPRAY  FOR 

6.     From  10  to 

20  days  after  5. 

Where  second  brood  codling 
moth  is  very  numerous,  arse- 
nate  of  lead  should  be  used 
at  this  time.  If  bitter  rot  and 
blotch  are  abundant,  use  bor- 
deaux mixture  also. 

IMPORTANT    SUGGESTIONS 

Paris  green,  arsenate  of  lead  and  some  other 
spray  materials  are  poisons.  Treat  them  as  such. 
Keep  them  locked  up  out  of  the  reach  of  stock,  poul- 
try and  especially  children. 

Spray  intelligently.  Be  sure  of  the  disease,  actual 
or  threatened,  of  the  remedy  and  the  method  of 
application. 

Spray  every  year.  This  is  of  the  utmost  impor- 
tance. The  benefits  of  spraying  last  for  several 
years.  So  do  the  results  of  neglect. 

Never  spray  when  the  fruit  trees  are  in  blossom. 
It  does  no  good,  it  may  do  harm  to  the  blossoms, 
and  it  is  almost  sure  to  poison  bees. 

Use  fresh  solutions  wherever  possible  and  always 
strain  them  into  the  tank. 

Do  not  spray  immediately  after  a  shower.  Much 
of  the  solution  will  run  off. 

In  general,  make  the  finest  spray  possible — a  mere 
mist.  Spraying  does  not  take  the  place  of  irriga- 
tion. It  is  not  even  the  intention  to  give  the  tree 
a  bath. 

But  spray  all  over  the  tree,  trunk,  branches  and 
bottoms  of  the  leaves.  Thoroughness  is  one  of  the 
most  important  points. 


SPRAYING  95 

Clean  pump  and  nozzles  thoroughly  when 
through. 

Give  plenty  of  pressure  on  the  pump.  Hard 
pumping  with  a  good  pump  is  what  makes  the  fine 
spray.  A  pressure  gauge  on  the  pump  should  show 
60-100  pounds  to  the  square  inch. 

Get  the  latest  spray  bulletin  from  the  state  ex- 
periment station  and  follow  the  directions  as  well 
as  you  can.  When  in  doubt,  ask  advice.  It  costs 
nothing  and,  as  Huckleberry  Finn  said,  it  is  often 
worth  it. 


VI 
THE  VARIOUS  FRUITS 

The  apple  is  easily  the  king  of  fruits.  It  is  grown 
more  widely  than  any  other,  there  are  more  varie- 
ties, it  covers  a  longer  season,  and  it  is  used  in  a 
greater  variety  of  ways.  It  is  the  fruit  most  exten- 
sively cultivated  for  market.* 

In  the  selection  of  varieties  for  planting  very 
careful  attention  should  be  given  to  questions  of 
local  adaptation — questions  which  have  been  sadly 
overlooked  in  recent  years  in  America.  Too  much 
attention  is  paid  to  universal  favorites,  like  Baldwin 
and  Ben  Davis,  and  not  enough  to  those  which  suc- 
ceed splendidly  only  in  restricted  neighborhoods, 
like  Roman  Stem,  Jeffris  and  Palmer  Greening. 
Moreover,  in  planting  a  home  garden  the  principles 
of  selection  should  be  altogether  different  from 
those  governing  the  choice  of  varieties  for  a  com- 
mercial orchard.  This  distinction  is  often  lost  to 
sight,  though  at  many  points  the  commercial  re- 
quirements are  directly  opposed  to  the  demands  of 
the  family  orchard.  In  order  to  bring  out  and  em- 
phasize this  difference  it  will  be  well  to  contrast 
these  principles  of  choice  in  the  following  table : 


*The  bulk  of  recent  American  literature  on  apple  growing 
deals  with  commercial  culture.  Those  interested  in  this  line 
should  read  The  American  Apple  Orchard  by  F.  A.  Waugh, 
and  American  Fruit  Culturist  by  John  J.  Thomas.  The  pres- 
ent work  deals  more  with  amateur  fruit  growing  and  presents 
the  matter  in  a  more  elementary  form. 


THE    VARIOUS    FRUITS  97 

RULES  FOR  CHOOSING  VARIETIES 
COMMERCIAL  ORCHARDS  HOME  ORCHARDS 

Select  a  very  few  varieties.  Select  many  varieties. 

Choose       standard       market  Choose  family  favorites. 

sorts 

Give  only  second  thought  to  Put  quality  first. 

quality 

Prefer     late-keeping     winter  Provide      a      succession      of 

varieties     (the    old    rule,  varieties. 

subject  to  exceptions). 

Choose    only    hardy,    healthy  Stick  to  some  good  varieties 

sorts.  in    spite    of    defects    of 

tree. 

Plant  no   novelties   or   oddi-  Test     occasional     promising 

ties.  novelties,  and  grow  some 

sweet  apples,  crabs,  etc. 

Having  laid  it  down  as  a  general  principle  that 
a  long  list  of  varieties  may  be  grown  in  the  home 
orchard,  and  that  personal  preference  should  largely 
influence  the  choice,  we  have  made  it  exceedingly 
difficult  to  offer  a  recommended  list  of  varieties. 
But  as  such  lists  seem  to  be  expected  in  every  work 
of  this  character,  the  following  suggestions  are 
offered  for  the  use  of  the  beginner  who  has  no 
better  advice  to  draw  upon : 

For  Central  New  England,  New  York  state  and 
southern  Michigan :  Benoni,  Chenango,  Early 
Harvest,  Garden  Royal,  Jeffris,  Maiden  Blush, 
Porter,  Red  Astrachan,  Williams  Favorite,  Yellow 
Transparent,  Fall  Pippin,  Gravenstein,  Mother, 
Duchess  of  Oldenburg,  King,  Wealthy,  Mclntosh, 
Rhode  Island  Greening,  Bailey  Sweet,  Isham 
Sweet,  Baldwin,  Hubbardston,  Westfield  Seek-no- 
further,  Wagener,  Sutton. 

In  northern  New  England :  Northern  Spy, 
Fameuse,  Livland  Raspberry  and  other  hardier 


98          BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO  FRUIT  GROWING 


FIG.    50 — HARVESTING   THE   PEACH    CROP 


THE   VARIOUS   FRUITS  99 

varieties  should  be  considered.  In  southern  New 
England:  Grimes  Golden,  Jonathan  and  Newtown 
Pippin  may  be  successfully  grown. 

In  New  Jersey,  Delaware,  Pennsylvania  and  the 
higher  altitudes  of  Maryland,  Virginia  and  West 
Virginia :  Early  Harvest,  Porter,  Golden  Sweet, 
Red  Astrachan,  Williams  Favorite,  Yellow  Trans- 
parent, Primate,  Maiden  Blush,  Rambo,  Fall  Wine, 
Wealthy,  Mclntosh,  Grimes,  Peck  Pleasant,  Tol- 
man  Sweet,  Hubbardston,  Nero,  Stayman,  Wine- 
sap,  Newtown  (or  Albemarle)  Pippin,  Jonathan, 
York  Imperial. 

For  Ohio,  Indiana,  Illinois,  Missouri,  Kentucky 
and  Tennessee :  Red  June,  Red  Astrachan,  Yellow 
Transparent,  Duchess  of  Oldenburg,  Chenango, 
Benoni,  Early  Joe,  Sweet  Bough,  Early  Harvest, 
Maiden  Blush,  Wealthy,  Grimes,  Bailey  Sweet, 
Jonathan,  Rails,  Roman  Stem,  Winesap,  Stayman, 
Newtown  Pippin,  Yates,  Ben  Davis. 

For  the  South  Atlantic  states:  Early  Harvest, 
Sweet  Bough,  Red  June,  Chenango,  Early  Joe,  Jef- 
fris,  Maiden  Blush,  Red  Astrachan,  Horse,  Sum- 
mer Rose,  White  Juneating,  Grimes,  Jonathan, 
Langford,  Shockley,  Stayman,  Romanite,  Yates. 

For  Wisconsin,  Minnesota,  South  Dakota  and 
Iowa:  Charlamoff,  Longfield,  Livland  Raspberry, 
Duchess  of  Oldenburg,  Switzer,  Hibernal,  North- 
western Greening,  St.  Lawrence,  Wealthy,  Malinda, 
Milwaukee,  Patten. 

For  Nebraska,  Kansas,  Colorado  and  Oklahoma : 
Yellow  Transparent,  Red  June,  Benoni,  Chenango, 
Maiden  Blush,  Duchess  of  Oldenburg,  Early  Joe, 
Dyer,  Mclntosh,  Wealthy,  Grimes,  Roman  Stem, 
Rambo,  Jonathan,  Ben  Davis,  Winesap,  Stayman, 
White  Winter  Pearmain. 


100 


BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO  FRUIT  GROWING 


For  the  Pacific  Coast  region :  Early  Harvest, 
Yellow  Transparent,  Red  Astrachan,  Benoni,  Gol- 
den Sweet,  Gravenstein,  Fall  Pippin,  Fameuse, 
Mclntosh,  Rambo,  Baldwin,  Esopus  Spitzenburg, 
Newtown  Pippin,  Rome  Beauty,  Jonathan,  Yellow 
Belleflower,  Grimes. 

Crab  apples  are  well  worth  including  in  every 


FIG.   51 — EDGE  OF  THE  HALE  CONNECTICUT  ORCHARDS 

garden  of  any  extent.    The  varieties  almost  univer- 
sally preferred  are  Hyslop  and  Transcendent. 

PEACHES 

The  list  of  valuable  peaches  is  much  shorter  than 
the  apple  list,  and  the  local  adaptations  are  much 
less  important.  Elberta  is  the  hardiest  and  most 
prolific  yellow  peach,  but  is  not  of  so  good  quality 
as  Foster,  Early  Crawford  or  Late  Crawford.  White 
peaches  of  the  modern  type  (Chinese  Cling  group) 


THE  VARIOUS   FRUITS  IOI 

are  very  different  from  the  old-fashioned  white 
peaches,  and  represent  the  acme  in  peach  quality. 
Of  these  Greensboro,  Hiley,  Waddell,  Champion, 
Carman  and  Belle  of  Georgia  offer  a  splendid  selec- 
tion. These  varieties  have  the  further  important 
advantage  of  withstanding  the  cold  of  winter  and 
the  late  frosts  of  spring  better  than  almost  any 
other  known  sorts. 

Other  well-known  varieties,  favorites  with  some 
growers,  are  Alexander  (very  early),  Chairs  (yel- 
low midseason),  Fitzgerald  (extra  hardy),  Mamie 
Ross  (early,  good  quality),  Mountain  Rose  (mid- 
season,  white,  good),  Oldmixon  (medium  late,  good 
quality),  St.  John  (yellow,  fair). 

PEARS* 

As  a  rule  pears  do  not  succeed  well  in  North 
America.  There  are  some  local  exceptions  to  this 
statement,  but  in  general  pears  of  any  sort  are  a 
rarity.  The  varieties  most  commonly  successful  are 
Bartlett,  Seckel,  Bosc,  Anjoti,  Flemish  Beauty, 
Lawrence,  Sheldon  and  Winter  Nelis.  In  the  cen- 
tral and  south  central  states  Kieffer  is  grown  much 
more  extensively  than  any  other  variety.  It  is 
hardy  and  prolific,  but  very  poor  in  quality  except 
for  canning.  Other  varieties  which  are  worth  plant- 
ing in  sections  where  pear  culture  amounts  to  any- 
thing are  Angouleme,  Buffum,  Clairgeau,  Cornice, 
Dana's  Hovey,  Louise  Bonne  de  Jersey,  Vicar  of 
Winkfield. 

Pears  prefer  a  rather  heavy  soil.  They  should 
also  receive  less  cultivation  and  less  nitrogenous 


*For  a  more  extended  discussion  of  pears  and  pear  grow- 
ing see  Pear  Culture  for  Profit,  by  P.  T.  Quinn. 


IO2  BEGINNERS     GUIDE   TO    FRUIT   GROWING 

fertilizer  than  apples.  Any  treatment  which  serves 
to  force  them  into  vigorous  growth  invites  the 
attacks  of  pear  blight.  About  the  only  practical 
treatment  for  this  blight  is  to  cut  out  and  burn  the 
blighted  branches. 


FIG.    52 — PROFITABLE  DWARF  PEARS   IX    WESTERN   XEW   YORK 
PLUMS* 

So  .many  different  varieties  and  species  of  plums 
are  in  cultivation  in  America  that  it  is  hard  to  make 


*Those  who  wish  to  pay  particular  attention  to  the  cultiva- 
tion of  plums  should  consult  Wattgh's  Plums  and  Plum  Cul- 
ture, published  by  Oranpre  Tudd  Co.,  New  York. 


THE   VARIOUS    FRUITS  103 

any  recommendations  in  a  general  work  like  the 
present.  The  principal  groups  of  varieties  are  as 
follows : 

The  European  plums,  derived  from  the  botanical 
species,  Primus  domestica,  and  numbering  such 
diverse  varieties  as  Green  Gage,  Fellemberg,  Lom- 
bard, Coe's  Golden  Drop,  Magnum  Bonum  or  Yel- 
low Egg,  and  many  others  of  considerable  value. 
These  are  grown  successfully  on  the  Pacific  coast, 
where  many  of  them  are  known  as  prunes,  and  in 
Michigan,  New  York  and  New  England.  Else- 
where they  are  generally  a  highly  qualified  success. 

The  Damsons.  These  are  small,  mostly  blue 
plums,  very  sour.  They  are  hardy  and  prolific,  and 
many  housewives  have  a  great  predilection  for  them 
in  the  making  of  preserves.  There  is  usually  a  good 
demand  for  them  in  the  market.  They  succeed  in 
the  same  territory  as  the  European  plums  men- 
tioned above,  but  may  be  grown  fairly  well  also  in 
Wisconsin,  Iowa,  Nebraska,  Kansas,  Missouri,  Illi- 
nois, and  Indiana.  The  best  varieties  are  Shrop- 
shire, Cluster  and  French  Damson. 

The  Japanese  plums  have  become  very  popular, 
especially  in  the  eastern,  central  and  southern 
states.  They  come  quickly  into  bearing,  are  very 
prolific  and  are  not  generally  subject  to  serious  dis- 
eases. The  best  varieties  are  Red  June  (on  account 
of  its  earliness  rather  than  for  quality),  Abundance, 
Burbank,  and  Satsuma  (with  red  flesh). 

Native  plums  of  several  different  species  are 
worth  cultivating  in  the  garden,  especially  in  the 
Gulf  and  Mississippi  Valley  states.  In  these  sec- 
tions the  nurserymen  propagate  for  sale  many  ex- 
cellent varieties,  of  which  the  best  known  are  Wild- 


104        BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO  FRUIT  GROWING 


THE   VARIOUS    FRUITS  IO5 

goose,   Milton,   Newman,   DeSoto,   Hawkeye,   Sur- 
prise, Weaver. 

Hybrid  plums  of  many  different  varieties  have 
been  introduced  of  late  years,  some  of  which  are 
decidedly  promising,  especially  for  use  in  southern 
central  states.  As  a  mere  suggestion,  we  may  name 
Gonzales,  Excelsior,  Golden,  and  Wickson. 

CHERRIES 

The  cherries  may  be  separated  into  two  broad 
groups,  the  sweet  cherries  and  the  sour  varieties. 
The  former  varieties  are  comparatively  difficult  of 
cultivation  and  succeed  only  in  restricted  localities 
in  New  York  state,  neighboring  states  and  on  the 
Pacific  coast.  The  sour  cherries  on  the  other  hand 
are  very  hardy  and  thrive  throughout  the  northern 
states  very  generally. 

The  favorite  sweet  cherries  are  Black  Heart, 
Downer,  Elton,  Napoleon,  Oxheart,  Yellow  Span- 
ish, Black  Tartarian,  Windsor  and  Governor  Wood. 

The  best  sour  cherries  are  Montmorency,  May 
Duke,  Morello,  Richmond  and  certain  Russian  sorts 
of  rather  uncertain  nomenclature. 


In  California  the  apricot  succeeds  admirably.  The 
tree  grows  well  in  most  of  the  northern  and  central 
states,  but  is  very  uncertain  in  fruiting.  Nowhere 
can  it  be  called  satisfactory,  much  less  indispensable. 
The  best-known  varieties  are  Alexander,  Blenheim, 
Early  Golden,  Harris,  Moorpark. 

NECTARINES 

The  nectarine  strongly  resembles  the  peach,  the 


io6         BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO  FRUIT  GROWING 


FIG.    54 — EARLY  RICHMOND  CHERRY  IN  ELOOM 


THE   VARIOUS   FRUITS 


107 


characteristic  feature  being  that  the  fruit  of  the 
nectarine  is  smooth  like  a  plum  instead  of  being 
covered  with  a  fuzz  like  the  peach.  Nectarines  are 
rather  widely  grown  in  Europe  and  deserve  more 
attention  in  America.  They  may  be  propagated 
and  cultivated  exactly  like  peaches.  Leading  varie- 
ties are  Downton  and  Early  Violet. 


FIG.   55 — APRICOTS    GROWN    IN    MASSACHUSETTS 
QUINCES* 

The  quince  is  of  easy  cultivation,  thriving  in 
almost  any  soil  and  climate  adapted  to  the  apple. 
The  leading  varieties  are  Champion,  Orange,  Rea 
and  Bourgeat. 

*The  only  special  work  on  this  fruit  is  Quince  Culture  by 
W.  W.  Meech. 


VII 
RENOVATION 

The  problem  which  the  beginner  in  fruit  growing 
has  to  face  is  not  always  that  of  planting  a  young 
orchard.  Indeed,  when  one  is  seeking  out  a  piece 
of  land  with  a  view  to  embarking  upon  the  fascinat- 
ing field  of  pomology,  he  nearly  always  prefers  to 
select  a  farm  which  already  has  some  apple  trees 
on  it.  Nine  times  out  of  ten  these  are  old  trees 
and  in  a  certain  stage  of  neglect  and  disrepair.  The 
renovation  of  these  old  orchards  is  a  rather  common 
practice  and  probably  always  will  be.  It  is  interest- 
ing and  in  some  cases  profitable. 

IS  IT  WORTH  WHILE? 

The  question  whether  it  is  to  be  profitable  or  not 
can  be  answered  with  some  reasonable  certainty  in 
advance.  The  answer  will  depend  upon  the  condi- 
tion of  the  trees  and  upon  the  methods  adopted  for 
their  recovery.  As  regards  the  condition  of  the 
trees,  there  are  four  things  to  be  noticed  in  particu- 
lar. These  are:  (i)  the  age  and  kind  of  the  trees, 
(2)  the  stand,  (3)  varieties,  (4)  scale,  canker  and 
other  diseases. 

If  the  trees  are  very  old  and  decrepit,  there  is, 
of  course,  no  use  in  trying  to  rejuvenate  them.  As 
a  rule,  trees  more  than  50  years  old  are  likely  to  be 
beyond  profitable  recovery,  though  this  age  limit 
varies  widely.  If  the  trees  have  several  sound 
limbs  and  are  making  2  or  3  inches  growth  each 

109 


no        BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO  FRUIT  GROWING 

year,  they  may  be  considered  in  sufficiently  good 
condition  for  treatment.  On  the  other  hand,  if  the 
tops  are  mostly  dead,  if  there  are  heavy  limbs 
broken  down,  and  if  there  are  large  rotten  cavities, 


FIG.    57 — OLD  TREE  BEFORE   RENOVATION 

the  trees  will  probably  cost  more  than  they  are 
worth  before  they  can  be  brought  back  to  useful 
lives. 

The  stand  of  trees  should  be  fairly  uniform  and 
complete.    If  the  orchard  has  been  depleted  by  any 


KEN  OVATION 


III 


cause  until  there  are  less  than  20  trees  to  the  acre, 
it  may  be  considered  doubtful  expediency  to  at- 
tempt a  renovation.  This  will  depend  naturally 
more  or  less  upon  the  value  of  the  land.  Cheap  or 
waste  land  might  be  left  to  support  10  or  15  trees 


FIG.    58 — SAME  TREE  FIRST   SUMMER  AFTER  TREATMENT 

to  the  acre,  but  good  land  which  can  be  brought 
under  cultivation  had  better  be  restored  to  the  plow 
by  complete  clearing  unless  it  can  show  at  least 
a  half  a  stand  of  trees. 

The  varieties  should  be  worth  while.     It  is  only 
a  waste  of  money  to  save  a  tree  which  will  bear 


BEGIN.NERS     GUIDE   TO   FRUIT   GROWING 


nothing  but  worthless  fruit  after  it  has  been  reno- 
vated. Of  course,  any  healthy  tree,  no  matter  how 
worthless  the  fruit  is  ordinarily,  may  be  grafted  to 


FIG.   59 — SAME  TREE  AFTER  TWO  YEARi 


any  desirable  variety,  and  this  regrafting  of  unde- 
sirable tops  to  better  varieties  is  often  an  impor- 
tant item  in  the  whole  program  of  renovation.  At 
the  same  time  this  grafting  is  hard  work  and  pre- 


RENOVATION  1 13 

sents  some  risks  and  difficulties,  so  that  the  orchard 
must  otherwise  be  much  better  in  order  to  justify 
the  undertaking. 

It  is  important  also  to  observe  the  extent  to  which 
an  orchard  is  attacked  by  insects  and  diseases.  The 
most  important  of  these  enemies  and  the  ones  most 
commonly  found  in  neglected  orchards  are  San 
Jose  scale,  oyster  shell  louse  and  apple  tree  canker. 
All  of  these  can  b.e  overcome,  but  to  get  rid  of  them 
requires  labor  and  expense.  Therefore,  they  offer 
an  objection  to  undertaking  the  renovation  of  any 
orchard,  and  in  case  of  doubt  may  turn  the  decision 
against  the  attempt. 

HOW   THE  WORK   IS  DONE 

The  work  of  renovating  an  old  orchard  consists 
in  a  series  of  operations  which  must  all  be  brought 
together  in  effective  array  in  order  to  secure  success. 
The  most  important  of  these  operations,  named  ap- 
proximately in  the  order  in  which  they  are  under- 
taken, are  (i)  pruning,  (2)  scraping,  (3)  grafting. 
(4)  spraying,  (5)  plowing,  (6)  fertilization,  (7) 
cover  cropping,  (8)  systematic  good  management. 
Let  us  look  at  these  in  more  detail. 

In  most  cases  the  renovation  of  an  old  orchard 
begins  with  pruning.  This  pruning  is  commonly 
done  in  early  spring,  viz.,  between  February  15  and 
April  15.  It  would  be  a  decided  advantage  if  a 
considerable  portion  of  this  pruning  were  under- 
taken in  June  or  July.  In  any  case  it  will  be  best 
to  carry  out  the  work  in  two  or  three  installments. 
At  the  first  pruning  only  the  largest  broken  limbs 
are  to  be  removed,  along  with  the  wood  which  is 
actually  dead.  After  them  there  may  be  taken  out 


114  BEGINNERS     GUIDE   TO   FRUIT    GROWING 

interfering  branches  and  those  which  render  the 
tree  unsymmetrical. 

On  most  old  trees  an  important  part  of  the  prun- 
ing consists  in  shortening  in  the  heads.  In  order 
to  get  nearer  to  the  base  of  operations,  and  espe- 
cially to  bring  the  tree  down  within  the  range  of 
the  spraying  machine,  fairly  extensive  heading-in  is 
often  necessary.  This  part  of  the  work  in  particular 
should  be  accomplished  with  care  and  circumspec- 
tion, and  should  be  distributed  over  two  or  three 
years  if  possible. 

At  the  first  attack  upon  the  problem  the  trunk 
and  main  branches  of  the  trees  should  be  scraped 


FIG.    60 — TREE    SCRAPER 

clean.  This  work  is  done  with  a  dull  knife  or  an 
old  hoe  or  with  a  special  tree  scraper,  which  may  be 
bought  from  any  dealer  for  25  or  30  cents.  The 
removal  of  the  old  broken  bark,  all  of  which  should 
be  put  on  the  bonfire  and  burned,  gets  rid  of  a  large 
storehouse  of  fungus  spores.  This  old  bark  is  the 
favorite  lodging  place  of  all  kinds  of  orchard  pests. 
When  it  is  removed  such  insects  and  fungi  are  not 
only  killed  in  the  process,  but  their  hiding  place  is 
removed  for  the  future. 

If  the  trees  are  to  be  regrafted  to  new  varieties 
this  work  will  accompany  the  original  spring  prun- 
ing and  scraping.  The  work  should  be  done  in  early 
spring,  as  already  described  on  page  12.  Many 


RENOVATION  115 

practical  fruit  men  consider  it  an  advantage  to  dis- 
tribute this  part  of  the  work  over  two  or  three 
years  rather  than  to  do  it  all  at  once.  As  the  graft- 
ing itself  requires  the  removal  of  a  certain  number 
of  branches,  it  should  be  done  before  the  pruning 
in  order  that  the  graftsman  may  intelligently  choose 
the  positions  for  his  grafts. 


FIG.  61 — OLD  TREE  MODERATELY  HEADED  BACK 


Oyster-shell  louse  and  San  Jose  scale  should  also 
be  attacked  at  the  time  the  campaign  is  opened. 
They  should  receive  thorough  spraying  early  dur- 
ing the  first  spring.  Probably  the  best  all-round 
treatment  for  these  insects  will  be  the  thorough 
application  of  lime-sulphur  wash,  which  should  be 


n6         BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO  FRUIT  GROWING 

put  on  as  warm  as  possible.  Canker  will  be  taken 
care  of  more  effectively  by  the  spring  applications 
of  bordeaux  mixture  which  are  to  follow. 

CULTIVATION 

Practically  all  neglected  orchards  stand  in  sod 
land  and  in  practically  all  cases  one  of  the  first  and 
most  important  steps  in  their  conversion  to  a  useful 
life  consists  in  plowing  the  soil.  This  is  an  under- 
taking for  a  man  of  patient  and  forbearing  temper. 
The  renovator  should  also  have  a  quiet  and  steady 
team.  A  well-trained  team  of  oxen  is  particularly 
useful  in  this  sort  of  salvage.  A  strictly  fancy  job 
of  plowing  must  not  be  expected  at  this  time.  "While 
the  plow  need  not  go  down  very  deep,  it  should 
go  as  deep  as  the  strength  of  the  oxen  and  the  driv- 
er's Christian  principles  will  justify.  Inevitably  a 
number  of  large  tree  roots  will  be  encountered.  In 
some  cases  the  plowman  may  cut  his  way  through 
these  with  an  ax ;  and  unless  a  large  amount  of 
this  chopping  is  done  near  the  main  trunks  of  the 
trees  no  damage  whatever  will  result.  In  fact,  this 
sort  of  root  pruning,  within  moderate  limits,  must 
be  considered  a  direct  advantage  in  the  line  of  the 
main  undertaking. 

FERTILIZERS 

All  neglected  orchards  are  suffering  for  want  of 
plant  food  and  their  recovery  will  require  the  adop- 
tion of  a  rational  system  of  fertilization.  At  the 
beginning  the  amounts  of  fertilizers  applied  should 
be  relatively  small,  however.  In  fact,  upon  good 
land  it  may  be  a  question  whether  it  is  not  better 


RENOVATION  1 1/ 

to  omit  all  fertilizers  during  the  first  two  years  of 
the  renovation  work.  The  stirring  of  the  soil  will 
liberate  additional  plant  food  and  the  pruning  of  the 
trees  will  itself  start  up  an  unusual  amount  of 
growth.  If  large  amounts  of  fertilizers  are  added 
at  the  same  time,  especially  barnyard  manure  or 
other  forms  of  nitrogen,  the  trees  may  easily  be 
forced  into  a  too  vigorous  growth.  Still,  some  fer- 


ric.   62 — A  BALDWIN"  ORCHARD   SUCCESSFULLY  REXOVATED 

tilizers  will  be  required.  The  plan  of  feeding  this 
plant  food  to  the  trees  should  be  mapped  out  on  the 
basis  of  the  needs  of  a  full-grown  orchard  and  the 
trees  should  be  brought  up  gradually  to  this  allow- 
ance. 

The  cover  cropping  will  follow  in  the  routine  of 
orchard  management,  as  already  described  on  page 
43.  The  cover  crop  will  be  especially  valuable  in 
bringing  the  soil  into  a  good  physical  condition  and 
in  adding  the  supply  of  humus  which  is  apt  to  be 


n8        BEGINNERS'  GUIDE  TO  FRUIT  GROWING 

deficient  in  neglected  orchards.  Buckwheat  is  prob- 
ably one  of  the  very  best  crops  for  use  under  these 
circumstances. 

General  good  management  must  replace  general 
neglect  all  along  the  line  in  accomplishing  what  we 
have  here  in  view.  This  will  mean  cultivation  of 
the  soil  throughout  the  summer,  and  a  regular  cam- 
paign of  spring  and  summer  spraying.  In  fact,  this 
is  the  essence  of  the  whole  method ;  namely,  that  all 
these  various  lines  of  work  shall  be  applied  at  once 
and  in  organized  co-operation.  Attempts  at  reno- 
vating old  orchards  often  fail,  but  the  reason  is  that 
some  one  has  a  notion  that  the  whole  thing  can  be 
accomplished  by  grafting  or  by  spraying,  or  by 
some  other  one  or  two  partial  reforms.  In  most 
cases  it  is  not  worth  while  to  undertake  any  one 
of  these  unless  the  whole  scheme  is  to  be  put 
through  vigorously  and  systematically  to  the  end. 

When  such  a  campaign  is  intelligently  carried 
out,  however,  upon  trees  whkh  have  a  reasonable 
hope  of  life,  the  results  are  often  surprisingly  good. 
Hundreds  of  cases  are  known  where  such  old 
orchards  have  been  brought  to  a  highly  profitable 
condition.  This  usually  requires  two  to  five  years. 
Commonly  the  results  begin  to  show  in  a  small  crop 
of  fruit  the  second  or  the  third  year.  From  that 
time  forward  the  crop  should  increase  in  quantity 
and  improve  in  quality. 


INDEX 


Page 

Page 

Age  of  nursery  trees  

...     24 

Kerosene  emulsion  

85 

Apple  fertilizers   

...     52 

Apple  stocks   
Apricots    

.  ..2,  18 
...    105 

Laying  out  an  orchard  

32 

Arsenate    of   lead  

5 

Lime-sulphur  solution   

49 
80 

Barnyard  manure    

.      43 

...      77 

Management  

39 

Budding    

...        8 

Minor  crops  

43 

Budding  knife   

...      10 

Mulch  method  

41 

Budding  season    

...        9 

Budding   stick    

9 

Nectarines    

..    105 

Budding  versus  grafting  
Buying   nursery   stock  

8 
...     22 

New  England  varieties  
Nitrate  of  soda   

97 
50 

Central  states  varieties  

.     99 

Cherries    
Cherry  stocks    
Cleft-grafting    
Cover-crop  seed   
Cover  crops   
Cultivation    

...    105 
21 
...      12 

47 
...    117 
.39,    116 

Nurse-graft    
Nursery  grades   
Nursery  inspection   
Nursery  stock    
Nurserymen   

7 
23 
24 
22 
23 

Cuttings    

1 

Pacific  Coast  varieties  

100 

Double   planting    
Doucin  stocks    

..28,29 
...      19 

Painting  wounds   
Paradise  stocks  

63 
19 

Dust  spraying   
Dwarf  apples  
Dwarf  pears  
Dwarfing  

...     86 
...      19 
...     20 
...      17 

Paris   green    
Peach  budding    
Peach  stocks    
Peaches    
Pear  fertilizers    

80 
9 
20 
100 
56 

Fall  versus  spring  planting.  .  .  . 
Fertilizers    
Fertilizers   for  special    fruits.. 

.     36 
4i,    116 

...     52 

Pear  stocks    
Pears     
Phosphoric   acid    

20 
..    101 
52 

"Foster  mother"  graft  
French  apple  stocks  

8 
...      19 

Planting   board    
Planting  distances    

34 
27 

General  management   
Grading  stock   
Grafting  knife  

...    118 

...      23 
1 

Planting  trees   
Plum  fertilizers  
Plum  stocks  

34 
56 
21 

Grafting  tools    

...      13 

Potash     

51 

Guarantees  

,'.'.',     24 

Principles   of   pruning    
Propagation    

60 

Heading  in  old  trees  
Height  for  heading  trees  
High  heads  versus  low  heads. 

...    114 
...      67 
...      65 

Pruning   
Pruning  at  planting  time.  .  .  . 
Pruning  knife  
Pruning  methods   

58 
65 
73 
70 

Pruning  saw  

74 

Influence  of  stock  on  cion  

...      16 

Pruning  shears  

73 

Insects,  how  to  fight  

...      79 

Pruning  tools  

72 

Inspection   

...     24 

Pumps   

88 

Interplanting    

...     29 

Purposes  of  pruning  

58 

120 


Page 

Pagt 

Quince  stocks   
Quinces    

.      20 
.    107 

Spraying  
Spraying  campaign   

...      76 
...     90 

Renovation   of   orchards    

.    109 

Spraying  suggestions  
Stock  and  cion    

..       94 

16 

Root-grafting    

.        2 

Stocks   for  various   fruits.  

18 

Rules  for  choosing  varieties  

.      97 

.62     113 

System  of  cultivation   

..        42 

Scraping   trunks    

.    114 

Season   for  pruning   
Secret  methods  
Seedling  trees  

,      62 
.       8 
.        2 

Tongue-graft   
Top-grafting    

3 
...      12 

Self-boiled  lime  sulphur  
Shaping  the  tree  

83 
.     63 

Varieties  of  fruits   

...     96 

Side-graft    

.       6 

Soluble  oils   

.     85 

When  to  spray   

...     90 

Splice-graft   

.       3 

Whip-graft  

...       3 

Spray  machinery  

.     87 

...     49 

JuL 


This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below 

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